Anti-Japanese War: Li Yunlong dared to attack Taiyuan

Chief of Staff of the North China Expeditionary Army, Moritake Tanabe, did not say the word congratulations. The commander of the First Army was a demotion for Tada Shun, and the position of commander of the First Army was now considered a high-risk job.

Kazuo Shinozuka was captured, Prince Asaka Naruhiko was seriously injured, Ishisuke Matsui was captured, and now Tada Shun is the fourth.

The 6th Division was surrounded and annihilated, the strongholds around Taiyuan were eliminated, the 20th Division headed north to Mount Wutai, and only the 14th Division was left hiding around Changzhi and dared not move out. The 1st Army was almost dead in name only.

"When will General Gangcun arrive?"

"We're almost there. We'll probably reach Sijiu City tomorrow."

As soon as Tanabe Moritake finished speaking, shouts suddenly came from the door.

"General Gangcun has arrived!"

Tada Shun and Tanabe Moritake suspected there was something wrong with their ears. Wasn't he supposed to arrive tomorrow? Why did he arrive today, and their North China Expeditionary Force hadn't received any news at all?

However, the two of them didn't have time to think about it and turned to go to the door to greet Ningji Okamura.

In front of the North China Expeditionary Army Headquarters.

Ningji Okamura, dressed in casual clothes, entered the headquarters under the escort of a group of soldiers.

At this time, Ningji Okamura was wearing a suit, a gentleman's hat, and round glasses. He was a little thin and walked very fast. When he heard the report from Tada Shun and others, Ningji Okamura had already walked more than half of the distance.

"General Gangcun, you're not arriving until tomorrow. Why didn't you tell me beforehand if you were arriving early?"

After seeing Ningji Okamura, Tada Shun and others immediately greeted him warmly.

At this time, Tada Shun had not yet been promoted to general, but Gangcun Guizi was promoted to general of the Japanese Army last year.

After meeting Tada Shun and Tanabe Moritake, Okamura Neiji nodded and said, "Go into the meeting first. I have important information to share."

"Hayi!"

The two men didn't say much. After summoning the important personnel in the North China Expeditionary Army Headquarters, they prepared to hold a meeting.

Seeing the number of people in the conference room, Gangcun frowned and said, "General Tada, General Tanabe, stay. The rest of you should evacuate. Inform the security personnel that no one is allowed to approach the conference room!"

After hearing this, Tada Shun and Tanabe Moritake's faces darkened. As everyone knows, conferences are small matters, and meetings with a few people are the meetings to discuss important issues.

"Yes!"

Soon, a group of generals from the North China Expeditionary Army Headquarters were asked to leave the meeting room. Only Tada Shun and Tanabe Moritake were left in the room, along with a confidential secretary who was responsible for taking minutes of the meeting. This confidential secretary was also brought by Okamura Neiji.

"Prince Higashikuni Naruhiko might have fallen into the hands of the Eighth Route Army!"

Okamura Neiji's first words almost made Tada Shun and Tanabe Moritake lose their balance.

"Nani?"

Tada Shun was somewhat surprised and asked, "Isn't Prince Higashikuni Naruhiko in Taiyuan? How did he fall into the hands of the Eighth Route Army?"

"Taiyuan was captured by the Eighth Route Army!"

Ningji Okamura directly took out a telegram: "This is a top-secret telegram sent from the headquarters. It contains the detailed process of how Taiyuan was captured by the Zhina people."

Originally, the Japanese did not know that Taiyuan had been captured, but a telegram from Commander Yan was sent to Ichiro Nanata, asking him for money. Only then did Ichiro Nanata realize that not only had he lost his money, but Taiyuan was also gone.

Ichiro Nanada chose to bypass the North China Expeditionary Army Headquarters and reported the result to the headquarters. After all, the plan to sell Taiyuan was a top-secret telegram from the headquarters. Now that there is a problem, the situation needs to be reported to the Army Headquarters as soon as possible.

After receiving this information, the Army Headquarters sent it to Okamura Neiji, so Tada Shun and others did not know about Taigen's situation, but Okamura Neiji knew it in advance.

"General Gangcun, the First Army..."

Okamura Neiji shook his head and said, "His Majesty intends to abolish the First Army. The First Army's performance is really too poor. Now we have two choices."

"The first is to concentrate our forces to recapture Taiyuan and maintain high pressure on the Taihang Mountains. After all, we are implementing the "Three Alls" policy to completely eliminate the Eighth Route Army in the Taihang Mountain base. General Tada, based on your understanding of the Eighth Route Army and Shanxi Province, how many troops would be needed to do this?"

Tada Shun quickly pulled out a map of the Taihang Mountains. "General Gangcun, the Taihang Mountains aren't just one mountain, but an entire range. It's about 500 kilometers long and 50 kilometers wide, with an average elevation of over 1,000 meters. The terrain here is very complex, with numerous peaks. We've explored it for several years but still haven't fully understood the topography."

"It's simply unrealistic to completely block the Taihang Mountains. Even if we can barely block all the main entrances and exits of the Taihang Mountains and then send troops in to encircle and suppress them bit by bit, it will take at least!"

Tada Shun thought for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "Based on the current combat effectiveness of the Eighth Route Army, we need at least 500,000 troops, or even more."

If it were half a year ago, Tada Shun might have mentioned a force of about 200,000. At that time, the Eighth Route Army's combat effectiveness was average, and the Japanese troops could be dispersed into battalions or even squadrons to enter the mountains for mopping-up operations.

But now the Eighth Route Army can even wipe out an entire division, so the Japanese need to send out at least a regiment to carry out a mopping-up operation, and there must be other troops nearby around this regiment to form a line.

If the rear wing in a straight line is attacked, the head wing can come to support. If the head wing is attacked, the tail wing can come to support. If the middle wing is attacked, both the head and tail wing can come to support.

This is the only way to ensure that the team will not be eaten.

Another prerequisite here is that this regiment cannot encounter the Eighth Route Army's Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Independent Column, otherwise it is very likely that it will not be able to wait for reinforcements to arrive.

"Except for the Kwantung Army, the Empire cannot mobilize so many troops right now."

The Kwantung Army's strength at this time was approximately 1, including six divisions responsible for field operations: the st, th, th, th, th, and th Divisions. (Note )

There are also four mule and horse divisions responsible for mountain warfare, namely the 9th, 10th, 25th and 28th divisions.

The Japanese also mobilized the 51st and 56th Divisions from their homeland some time ago to support De San's plan and prevent the Soviet Far East troops from being transferred away.

In addition, there is the 29th Division established in the four eastern provinces, the 19th and 20th Divisions formed in North Korea, and a mechanized 23rd Division. The entire Kwantung Army has a total of 16 divisions and nearly 400,000 people.

The remaining troops include fourteen so-called border garrisons and ten independent garrisons, with each battalion of these garrisons having a staff of about fifteen thousand.

In addition, the Kwantung Army had 18 independent artillery regiments, not counting the Type 92 infantry guns, only counting field guns, there were more than 1,700 mountain guns in total, and nine tank regiments.

The Army Aviation also has the Second and Fifth Flying Groups. The Japanese Flying Group is equivalent to the organization of a division, with a total of six Flying Regiments, namely the Second, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, and Twelfth, and more than a thousand aircraft.

When Tada Shun and Tanabe Moritake heard Okamura Ningji mention the Kwantung Army, they couldn't help but look at it with anticipation. The Kwantung Army sent three divisions to Mount Wutai. If they were willing to send troops to Shanxi Province, then the problems in Shanxi Province could be easily solved.

"But the Kwantung Army has already reached its limit by withdrawing three main divisions to the south. They are unable to reinforce our North China Expeditionary Army. They are worried that the withdrawal of troops will be separated from the Kwantung Army's battle sequence."

Note 1: The th Division was affiliated with the Kwantung Army and was transferred to attack Zhongtiao Mountain. It was included in the combat sequence of the st Army and was trapped in Changzhi after the battle.

Chapter 342: The Devil's Conspiracy

Okamura Neiji's words once again brought the hopes of Tada Shun and Tanabe Moritake, which had just risen, to the bottom.

"General Okamura, is the Empire going to give up Taigen so easily?"

Ningji Okamura produced another document. "This is intelligence from the Special High Section. The Eighth Route Army has begun a large-scale relocation in Taiyuan."

Both of them understood what Ningji Okamura meant.

"The most valuable thing about Taiyuan is the Taiyuan Arsenal. Now the arsenal may have fallen into the hands of the Eighth Route Army. Taiyuan has lost its value."

"General, what do you mean?"

Ningji Okamura looked at Tada Shun and said nothing, but Tada Shun understood what Ningji Okamura meant and gave up Taigen.

However, the order to abandon Taiyuan could not have been given by the newly appointed commander of the North China Expeditionary Army, Ningji Okamura.

Tada Shunya understood why Ningji Okamura arrived at the North China Expeditionary Army Headquarters a day in advance and without notifying anyone.

And before the commander's handover ceremony was completed, they came to me to hold such a meeting.

You need to give this order yourself.

"Is this an order from headquarters?"

Tada Shun asked somewhat unwillingly.

"Headquarters has already made preparations. The loss of Taiyuan is not the fault of our army, but the fault of those idiots in the navy. Li Yunlong's troops disguised themselves as marines and entered Taiyuan, which led to its fall."

"The situation in Jin Province is too devastating. The Empire cannot continue to send additional troops to Jin Province, so it has to make a strategic shift and focus its attack on the mountain city. The navy is already preparing to take action in Southeast Asia. If our army does not withdraw troops to the south, Southeast Asia will become a paradise for the navy."

"Once the navy occupies the entire Southeast Asia region, the imperial policy will inevitably tilt towards the navy and fully support their policy of southward expansion."

Tada Shun and Tanabe Moritake were both high-ranking officials in the Japanese army and were well aware of the struggles between the navy and army within the Japanese army.

The navy has been clamoring to move south, that is, to occupy islands in Southeast Asia and other regions, while the army is divided into two factions and is still fighting internally. One side is clamoring to move north, and the other side is clamoring to move west. Moving north means moving north to Siberia, and moving west means swallowing up the entire China.

The navy requested to go south in order to compete for the right to speak within the Japanese army. Although the Japanese army had a fleet that could transport the army to land, the many islands to the south still required the cooperation of the navy. As time went by, the navy's power began to grow and it could suppress the army.

The army's move north had nothing to do with the navy. Siberia didn't even have an ice-free port. So when the Japanese occupied the four northeastern provinces and the army was debating whether to move north or south to swallow up the whole of China, the navy supported the army's move south.

The reason why the Japanese navy is so kind is not because the relationship between the navy and the army has eased, but in fact, the Japanese navy wants to split the Japanese army from within and cultivate a group of army that has good relations with the navy.

So during the Battle of Shanghai, there was this magical thing where the Marines helped the Army defend the Magic City.

As a result, the navy had a good dream, but it underestimated the shamelessness of the army. When the army took over the Magic City and began to move south in large numbers, it kicked the Japanese navy aside and stopped playing with the navy.

The result was that after 1940, the navy did not provide any help to the army except for occasionally sending a squadron within the squadron to help the army under the order of the headquarters.

However, the navy's efforts were not in vain. The navy did cause a split in the Japanese army. The Kwantung Army and other Japanese armies had become alienated. The Battle of Nomonhan was actually the result of an internal split in the Japanese army.

The Kwantung Army, which had been supporting the northward advance, decided to rebel against the enemy and go to Siberia to plant potatoes after seeing the headquarters supporting the army's southward advance. As a result, the Kwantung Army learned a good lesson in the face of the Soviet Union's steel torrent, and its vanguard was almost wiped out.

In fact, the Kwantung Army was unwilling to admit the defeat in the Battle of Nomonhan. It was even preparing to mobilize a large army for a decisive battle, but was stopped by the headquarters. This result was the beginning of the split between the Kwantung Army and the Japanese headquarters, and they gradually began to obey orders but not announcements.

"The headquarters has made up its mind to support the navy's southward advance, so our army must have a share of the navy's southward advance."

After finishing his words, Okamura Neiji looked at Tada Shun and said, "The Army no longer has any more troops to support Shanxi Province. The 14th and 20th Divisions in Shanxi Province will also be withdrawn, and the 116th Division assigned to the First Army will also move south."

Tada Shun said unwillingly, "Are you going to give up Jin Province just like that? Hand Taiyuan over to us?"

After hearing this, Ningji Okamura shook his head and said, "Of course not. The Eighth Route Army wants to transfer Taiyuan's supplies, but they're dreaming. Before I came here, I had already contacted the Kwantung Army and negotiated some terms. They will support us with a batch of heavy explosives. What we need to do now is to turn Taiyuan into ruins."

"Since the Empire cannot occupy Taiyuan, then we must completely destroy Taiyuan!"

Tada Shun saw the madness of Okamura Ningji. Although he was a little unwilling to take the blame, he still gritted his teeth and said, "Ha Yi, I am willing to support General Okamura."

"Tada-kun, the empire will never forget your contribution."

Ningji Okamura patted Tada Shun on the shoulder. Someone needed to take the blame for the decision to abandon Taiyuan, and Tada Shun was the most suitable person. After all, the situation in Jin Province deteriorated under Tada Shun's leadership.

However, the main responsibility lies with the Japanese army. It was because the navy acted on its own initiative and sent marines to Taiyuan, which led to the loss of Taiyuan. The Eighth Route Army occupied Taiyuan and emptied it, making Taiyuan lose its value, so they had to abandon Taiyuan.

"Although Taiyuan has been abandoned, Shimen, Baoding and other areas must be defended. The 20th and 14th Divisions can go to Baoding and Shimen!"

Tada Shun thought for a moment and said, "General, what about General Matsui Ishisora?"

"General Matsui and Prince Higashikuni Naruhiko are under the charge of the Special High Police. They have already sent people to contact Yamashiro and redeem General Matsui and the prince from them."

"General, General Matsui and His Royal Highness the Prince have fallen into the hands of the Eighth Route Army. As for the mountain city..."

"Don't worry, we understand the Zhina people. As long as the conditions are right, we can cause internal strife among them. The reason we contacted Shancheng is to destroy their unity."

At this point, Ningji Okamura said with a half-smile, "Tada-kun, do you really think the Empire will give up Taigen so easily?"

Toshi Tada and Moritake Tanabe still couldn't understand the headquarters' decision. Withdrawing from Taiyuan so easily was not in line with the headquarters' style.

"Mr. Tada, sometimes we don't need to do it ourselves to defeat the enemy. Send a telegram to the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army and tell them that the Empire is willing to withdraw from Shanxi Province and return it to the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army. This time, the Empire has no conditions and is willing to return the entire Shanxi Province to the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army. We can also provide them with certain weapons and funds to help them eliminate the Eighth Route Army, the biggest threat to Shanxi Province!"

Only then did Tada Shun and Tanabe Moritake understand Okamura Neiji's purpose.