Bright Sword: The Flowers of War

Chapter 107: Listen to the instructions but not the announcement

The movements of the Japanese troops could not be kept secret from Li Zongren, who was constantly monitoring them.

Li Zongren was overjoyed when he saw the telegram in his hand.

"Good heavens, even the Eighth Brigade has been mobilized. Only one battalion is left to guard the entire Fuji Prefecture. Is Isogai Rensuke really not afraid that I will cut off his retreat?"

Sun Lianzhong, who was standing to the side, said quietly, "Perhaps in Isogai Rensuke's view, we no longer have the strength to cut off their retreat?"

"Hmph!" Li Zongren threw down the pencil in his hand, put his hands on his hips and paced back and forth a few times. He said in a deep voice, "Immediately send a telegram to Tang Enbo, telling him that the Japanese troops in Tengxian have been urgently transferred to Taierzhuang. Order him to send a division to retake Tengxian immediately."

"Send another telegram to the 40th and 59th Armies, ordering them to take the time to rest and recuperate in Linyi, and to keep a close eye on the movements of the Japanese 5th Division. Report any unusual activity immediately."

"Yes!"

"To Commander Tang of the 20th Army Corps, Brother Enbo: "
According to confirmed reports, the main force of the enemy's 8th Brigade stationed in Tengxian has been ordered to urgently transfer north to reinforce the Isogai Division at Taierzhuang. Currently, only a large battalion and some puppet troops remain in Tengxian, leaving the city's defenses weak and chaotic. This is a golden opportunity!

Brother, immediately dispatch strong troops to attack Tengxian with lightning speed. Once the city is captured, the enemy's rear route at Taierzhuang will be cut off, and the flank of the enemy's Fifth Division at Linyi will be threatened, achieving multiple benefits in one fell swoop.

The key to this battle is speed; we must seize the opportunity in one fell swoop. If we delay and allow the enemy time to defend, we will miss this crucial opportunity, and it will be too late for regrets!

Li Zongren, Commander-in-Chief of the Fifth War Zone

March 24, 1938

At the 20th Army Corps headquarters, more than 50 kilometers south of Zaozhuang, Tang Enbo looked at the telegram in his hand and couldn't help but sneer: "What's wrong with our Commander Li? He even sent such a bizarre order."
"You want us to send a division to retake Zaozhuang? Do you really think the Japanese are made of clay?"

Guan Linzheng, the commander of the 52nd Army, couldn't help but say, "Commander, didn't Commander Li say that because the battle of Taierzhuang is critical, the 8th Brigade stationed in Tengxian has rushed to Taierzhuang? Now is the perfect time to recapture Tengxian."

"Hahaha..." Tang Enbo couldn't help but burst into laughter, glancing sideways at Guan Linzheng: "According to the intelligence we received yesterday, the 31st Division defending Taierzhuang has been fighting since the 13th, and now only less than 3,000 of its 8,000 men remain."

Now you're telling me the Japanese troops who attacked Taierzhuang suffered heavy losses? Tell me... is that true?

"This……"

Guan Linzheng hesitated for a moment.

After all, this was too surreal. Taierzhuang, which was struggling to hold on, suddenly launched a counterattack against the Japanese army, causing them heavy losses and forcing the Japanese army to urgently mobilize troops to reinforce them. This seemed more like a conspiracy by the Japanese army.

Seeing that Guan Linzheng remained silent, Tang Enbo snorted coldly: "If we send troops to recapture Teng County now, who knows if the Japanese army will attack from behind?"

"If the location of the main force of the legion is exposed, wouldn't that put the 70,000 soldiers of the 20th Legion in danger?"

Tang Enbo's words resonated with many generals, who agreed that the 10th Division's actions were indeed highly unusual. Who could guarantee that this wasn't a trap? On the battlefield, all sorts of schemes and tricks were used, and if the 20th Army Corps fell into the trap, tens of thousands of soldiers could be in danger.

Seeing that none of the generals objected, Tang Enbo showed a smug look on his face. He raised his right hand and said to the telegraph operator, "Reply to Commander Li... Say that the enemy situation is currently unclear, and the location of the main force of the Japanese army is still uncertain. If we fall into their trap, the consequences will be unimaginable. In order to ensure the smooth progress of the Battle of Xuzhou, the 20th Army Corps should wait for the right opportunity and then fight the Japanese army to the death when the time is right."

"Damn it... Utterly bastard..."

Upon receiving the telegram from Tang Enbo, Li Zongren was furious.

"This Tang Enbo is cowardly and misses opportunities in battle; he is not fit to be the commander of the 20th Army Corps!"

Sun Lianzhong frowned: "Commander Li, should we send him another telegram to urge him on? We should be more stern in our tone?"

“It’s no use.” Li Zongren sighed. “The 20th Army Corps is Chiang Kai-shek’s direct force, and Tang Enbo often considers himself a disciple of the emperor.”

"Believe it or not, if I dare to reprimand him, within a few hours, Generalissimo Chiang will call to plead for him, and might even transfer the 20th Army Corps out of the Fifth War Zone?"

"No way?" Sun Lianzhong was speechless, his eyes widening in disbelief.

“Nothing is impossible.” Li Zongren shook his head with a wry smile. He knew his old rival, with whom he had fought for many years, all too well. Based on his understanding of Chiang Kai-shek, the other party was absolutely capable of doing such a thing.

"Since Tang Enbo refuses to attack, what should we do?"

Li Zongren pondered for a long time, then shook his head sadly: "The troops are stretched thin everywhere, and we really can't spare any other troops to come to the aid of Taierzhuang. We can only rely on Mingxi himself."

However, we can't just sit idly by. The 31st Division has already retreated to the south bank of the canal, hasn't it? I'll immediately have the supply depot send 3,000 new recruits and a batch of weapons and ammunition to the 31st Division. You must complete your rest and reorganization as quickly as possible, understand?"

Sun Lianzhong looked at him in surprise: "No... my Commander Li, the 31st Division has just withdrawn, please let us catch our breath, we can't use them to death."

"Catch your breath?" Li Zongren gave a wry smile: "Brother Fang Lu... I'll give you guys a chance to catch your breath, but who will let me catch my breath?"

The Japanese are pressing closer and closer, and Tang Enbo is ignoring orders. What can I do?

Looking at Li Zongren's worried face, Sun Lianzhong sighed softly. As a senior general, he naturally understood the pressure on Li Zongren's shoulders. Despite being the commander-in-chief of the war zone, second only to the emperor, with more than 600,000 troops under his command, he was always surrounded by a large entourage wherever he went.

But if the war goes badly, he, as the commander of the war zone, will be the first to suffer, and then he will be drowned in the spittle of the people across the country.

Just as Li Zongren and Sun Lianzhong were looking worried, Su Yaoyang was directing three battalions, with the support of a tank company, to launch a counterattack against the 33rd Brigade in Taierzhuang.

Unlike other Nationalist Army units, Su Yaoyang's security regiment had an extremely brutal fighting style.

First, they called in artillery fire to bombard the Japanese positions intensively, and then ordered the tank company to advance forward, while the infantry followed behind the tanks to protect their flanks. If they encountered strongpoints or resistance, either the tanks would fire a shot, or the infantry behind them would set up 60mm mortars to cover the target.

In short, the principle is: if something can be solved with ammunition, never sacrifice human lives.

This tactic of warfare was very unsettling for the 33rd Brigade, which was responsible for the defense. When did the Chinese army start using artillery barrages? Wasn't this something only the Great Japanese Empire was qualified to do?
(End of this chapter)