Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

Wei Hongjun nodded.

This time, the 16th Regiment, the 18th Regiment, the Independent Regiment, and the local troops under the 16th and 18th Regiments mobilized more than 10,000 people.

There were only a few ambushes, but no spectacular matches.

Before the final evacuation, taking down Xuanhua would be a good ending.

Most importantly, the troops captured a lot of valuables in Xiahuayuan this time, especially a lot of artillery pieces of various types, which could be used against the Japanese in Xuanhua.

"Yes. But we can't surround them and attack them. The Japanese will fight to the death, and if it lasts too long, our casualties will be huge. If we surround them on three sides and leave one side vulnerable, let them go. We can just take Xuanhua."

Taking Xuanhua is just a way to make some money on the way back.

Wei Hongjun didn't want to waste time here. After all, attacking the city would cause heavy casualties. The best way was to scare the enemy away.

Wang Qiuyun nodded and said, "Okay, I understand. I'll go deploy it now."

Three surrounded but one missing.

Wang Qiuyun gathered the 18th Regiment, the remaining troops of the Independent Regiment, and some troops of the Guard Corps and began to attack Xuanhua fiercely, but gave up the road to the north.

"Your Excellency, I can't hold on any longer."

Currently, the highest-ranking military officer in Xuanhua is Nanbu Shigezo, the captain of the 2nd Independent Battalion of the 2nd Independent Mixed Brigade.

The 18th Regiment did not exert any effort before.

Wu Qinghe and Lei Jiabin ordered their troops to take turns attacking, one to tire out the enemy, the other to train the troops' offensive capabilities. After a few days, the Japanese army was already very exhausted.

It's impossible not to be tired.

The independent battalions of the Japanese Independent Mixed Brigade were already small, numbering only about 1000 men. Although the Second Independent Mixed Brigade received new recruits after the attack, they only added about men. Many of the squadrons under its command, though called squadrons, actually had fewer than men.

The two Japanese squadrons in Xuanhua also suffered casualties in the battles over the past few days, and the total number of troops able to fight now is less than 200.

The combined force of the Xuanhua City guards only numbered about 600 men. After being repeatedly attacked by the 18th Regiment for the past few days, how could they not be exhausted? Now Wang Qiuyun had brought the Independent Regiment with him, along with so much heavy equipment.

After fighting for less than four hours, the Japanese army could no longer bear it.

There are still too few troops.

After four hours of fighting, Japanese casualties rose rapidly. The Eighth Column, in particular, used all the captured heavy weapons, including infantry guns, flat-fire guns, and mortars, to give the Japanese a taste of the power of heavy weapons.

"How many more people are there?"

"There are only about seventy people who can still fight. The guards are a bunch of cowards and can't fight at all.

"and many more."

"Colonel

“Wait for news, I have already asked for help from Chahar.

Nanbu Chongsan didn't want to leave Xuanhua just like that.

He had just been transferred to the Second Independent Mixed Brigade as the captain of the Second Independent Battalion. He hadn't even begun to show his true strength yet, and after only a month in Xuanhua, he was about to lose it. Nanbu Chongsan simply couldn't accept it.

"Da da da"

"Colonel, Commander Okabe said, said..."

"explain."

"No reinforcements."

"No reinforcements?"

"Yes."

Nanbu Shigezo didn't know why he breathed a sigh of relief.

In fact, Nanbu Shigemitsu also knew that the Mongolian army had no mobile forces, but he still couldn't help but ask for help. Now that there were no reinforcements, he could make a choice.

"Don't tell Makino-kun, go gather our people."

"Hai."

A dead Taoist friend is not a poor Taoist.

The troops couldn't retreat completely. If they did, they would be defeated. They had to leave troops behind to hold the line. Of course, the Nanbu Heavy Third Regiment couldn't leave any of their own men behind; they would definitely be setting themselves up to harm others. Anyway, the squadron of the Fourth Independent Battalion, which had arrived from Zhuolu to provide support, was already at the city wall.

It is their honor to die for His Majesty the Emperor.

But this is a temporary solution.

After Nanbu Shigemitsu fled with a small group of Japanese soldiers, it took only half an hour for the others to discover him. The Japanese army hadn't done anything yet, but the guards were already resentful. How could they possibly agree to being cannon fodder?

The entire army was in chaos.

No one was interested in stopping them, and everyone was trying to escape.

On March 1939, 3, the 3th Column captured Xuanhua, an important town in Chahar, while evacuating from Xiahuayuan.

Chapter 223 Skinning

"Brother Li Guangrong, although these clothes are old, the troops are short of winter clothes now. Let the troops take them all away."

The Eighth Column captured Xuanhua.

After more than five hours of fighting, 97 Japanese soldiers were killed, wounded, or captured, and 339 garrison troops were killed, wounded, or captured. In just over five hours, these few Japanese and puppet troops were killed or wounded—in fact, it wasn't much. But Wang Qiuyun and Wei Hongjun were still very happy. Killing or wounding the Japanese and puppet troops wasn't Wang Qiuyun and Wei Hongjun's goal; their goal was Xuanhua. Xuanhua was truly a great place.

It is an important town in Chahar.

In terms of importance, it far exceeds Zhuolu and Huailai.

Xuanhua is also an important industrial city in Chahar. Historically, Xuanhua was more famous than Zhangjiakou. During the Ming Dynasty, Xuanhua was one of the nine important border towns. Although Xuanhua declined significantly after Zhangjiakou's rise, it is still a popular destination.

But today Xuanhua is still a very important city in Chahar.

The Japanese even built a steel plant in Xuanhua.

There are even more logistical supplies.

Although it does not have the weapons, ammunition and logistical supplies of two independent battalions like Xiahuayuan, Xuanhua is where the Second Independent Battalion is stationed, so all the good things of the Second Independent Battalion are here.

Moreover, Xuanhua is the real gateway to Zhangjiakou.

Many pseudo-government agencies are located in Xuanhua.

This time, the Eighth Column defeated them all in one go.

"Commissar Wei, I heard that a large batch of new winter clothes and quilts were seized from the warehouse. I don't think these old clothes and quilts are needed anymore.

Li Guangrong found Wei Hongjun.

I expressed my dissatisfaction. We had seized so many good things, but they still wanted to take away these old clothes and quilts.

"Our Eighth Route Army cannot be compared with the Jin Army you were with before.

We're now fighting behind enemy lines, and a lot of supplies have to be captured. This winter, many of our troops are short of winter clothing and are fighting in thin layers. Bringing these back will allow us to continue using them next year. As the head of the Eighth Column, I must be frugal. This time, when we enter Xuanhua, we must take away anything the troops can use.

“That life was really hard.”

Li Guangrong burst into praise.

Compared to Cao Mo, Li Guangrong was much younger. He was only 28 years old, but having worked in the mining area for over half a year, he had aged considerably. As a young officer in the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army, he had never worried about these things.

"Brother Li Guangrong seems to be from the 34th Army?"

"Yes. Our commander is Commander Yang Aiyuan."

"That's a shame. After the Battle of Taiyuan, Commander Yan revoked the 34th Army's designation, and the troops were merged into other units.

"The 34th Army is gone? What about our 70th Division?"

"It seems to have been incorporated into the 19th Army."

"Oh shit."

Li Guangrong couldn't help but swear.

But he quickly scratched his head and said, "Commissar Wei, the old troops have all crossed the river. It doesn't matter where we fight the Japanese. I'm joining the Eighth Route Army. Do you welcome me?"

"Welcome, of course."

The Kuomintang prisoners rescued from Xiahuayuan could greatly supplement the military cadre reserves of the Eighth Column if they were used properly, because among these prisoners were a large number of Kuomintang officers and veterans with rich war experience.

Among these people, many certainly want to return to their original units.

Unfortunately, there were no Nationalist troops nearby. The entire Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region was seized from the Japanese by the Eighth Route Army. Therefore, unlike other Eighth Route Army regions, the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region lacked any Nationalist troops around it that would have had a high degree of conflict with the Eighth Route Army.

Because there was no sign of the Nationalist Army in the Jin-Cha-Yi Military Region.

Therefore, these prisoners could only stay in the Eighth Column.

Wei Hongjun smiled and said, "At the beginning of the 34th year of the Republic of China, when our Red Army entered Shanxi during the Eastern Expedition, we fought against your 70th Division of the th Army. At that time, your troops' defensive positions were well deployed, and the trenches they dug were also very unique. Time was tight, so we didn't have the opportunity to learn from you properly. Our Eighth Route Army is good at mobile warfare, and finding opportunities to attack the enemy's flanks or rear is our specialty. However, when it comes to building defensive positions, including digging trenches, there are definitely many areas we need to learn from you. Don't hide when the time comes.

As the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression deepens, including the expansion of the base areas, the Eighth Column will have more and more opportunities to fight regular battles with the Japanese army in the future.

No matter how much the Eighth Route Army fought guerrilla warfare and mobile warfare, there were always units that had to fight blocking battles and offensive battles. In this regard, the Eighth Route Army was weak. The Shanxi-Suiyuan Army, on the other hand, had more experience than the Eighth Route Army.

Including digging trenches and designing trenches, they were far better than the Eighth Route Army.

You still have to study.

Just like in history, the Eighth Route Army besieged a Japanese battalion at Guanjia Nao. After the battle, the Eighth Route Army troops visited the Japanese trenches and learned a lot from them.

"Political Commissar Wei, what are you talking about? If I join the Eighth Route Army, then we are a family. Family members should help each other, not hide things. Political Commissar Wei, you are underestimating me."

"Okay, then let's just say I was wrong."

Wei Hongjun laughed out loud.

But he still said seriously: "But you have to be mentally prepared. We, the Eighth Route Army, are fighting behind enemy lines and have no logistical support. We have to seize much of our food, clothing, weapons and ammunition from the enemy. Life is very hard and cannot be compared with the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army."

"Commissar Wei, don't worry. You may not know this, but we Shanxi people are the most able to endure hardships. And when it comes to careful budgeting, we Shanxi people are unmatched by anyone else."

Li Guangrong's unit of the First Corps of the Guard Corps was mainly responsible for maintaining order after entering Xuanhua.

Soon Wang Qiuyun, along with the 18th Regiment's commander Wu Qinghe and political commissar Lei Jiabin, arrived. Wang Qiuyun's face flushed, perhaps from excitement or the low temperature.

"Everything is fine?"

"All right."

Wang Qiuyun nodded.

He said excitedly, "We made the right choice to attack Xuanhua this time. Xuanhua has a lot of good stuff. Weapons, ammunition, logistical supplies, and even over 500,000 silver dollars. With the spoils from Xiahuayuan and Xuanhua, the troops will have more than enough for anything they need in the next few months."