I am Jiang Weiguo in World War II

This telegram did not make Jiang Weiguo feel any peace of mind, because he knew well that the national army's combat effectiveness, combat quality, command system, reaction speed, mobility, equipment and many other aspects were very backward. too much effect.

According to repeated analyzes by the staff of the Intelligence Department of the Bureau of Maritime Statistics and the staff of the Nanjing Garrison Headquarters, it is believed that if the Japanese army is really playing the trick of "building plank roads openly and keeping warehouses in secret", then the Japanese army in North China should be the earliest after receiving a large-scale increase in secret troops. Attacks are not expected until mid-March, late March at the latest.

It is conservatively estimated that the Japanese army transported 20 troops to East China on the surface, but actually to North China. Such a huge military force and the vast amount of ordnance it needs are by no means a one-off thing. It will take a long time, not to mention Well, the Japanese army still did it secretly, and it took a lot of effort to cover up and deceive, so it took a little longer than normal delivery.

Things developed in such a way that all Chinese military leaders, including Jiang Weiguo, were caught off guard.

In the early morning of March 3, Jiang Weiguo, who was still sound asleep, was awakened by a rapid knock on the door. He jumped up hastily and ran to open the door.

Outside the door, Xiao Yao's face was full of expressions of attending a memorial service.

"The Japanese army is attacking North China!" Xiao Yao whispered, "High-intensity direct attack!"

"So fast?" Jiang Weiguo was taken aback. "Isn't it going to be in the middle or late March? Is the Japanese army already fully prepared? This is impossible! How can a 30 million army be deployed so quickly!"

"I said 'high-intensity direct attack'!" Xiao Yao corrected, "not 'large-scale direct attack'!"

"What do you mean?" Jiang Weiguo couldn't understand why.

"About [-] Japanese troops were thrown into the attack!" Xiao Yao elaborated, "Only [-] were secret troops that were drawn from us!"

"Where?" Jiang Weiguo read the telegram anxiously.

"Jinan!"

"Damn it! The second, fifth, and sixth theaters must reinforce the first theater!"

"I don't think that's necessary anymore!" Xiao Yao said calmly, "The 1st Army Group has already fallen into a complete collapse. At dawn, southern Hebei will fall completely, and the Japanese army will be pushed to the edge of the Yellow River. The area under the jurisdiction of the second and fifth theaters does not exist at dawn, how can the other theaters be reinforced? It is better to let the second theater and the fifth theater do a good job of defense!"

"How could this be?" Jiang Weiguo was extremely astonished.

The East China battlefield with Nanjing as the core was calm, while the North China battlefield was full of gunfire and blood.

On March [-]rd, the Japanese army officially launched a strategic offensive on the Chinese battlefield.

The land of North China, which had been quiet for four or five months since the Battle of Pingjin, suddenly fell into an unprecedented storm.

When the battle report came, the whole of China was shocked.

The Japanese army is indeed playing with the trick of "building plank roads in the open and keeping the warehouse in the dark", and it is a big hand at the strategic level.

Before this battle, the Japanese army had about 30 troops on the East China battlefield. At the same time, the Japanese army built 10 new divisions and 25 troops. On the surface, the Japanese army transferred these 10 divisions to East China with great fanfare. But crossing the river in white clothes, the Japanese fleet transporting the 10 divisions of the Japanese army was divided into two in the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea. Less than one-third sailed to Shanghai, and more than two-thirds sailed to Lushun and Dalian. The move was carried out on the vast sea, and the Chinese intelligence agencies naturally had no idea.

Take the 106th Division as an example. The division marched towards East China and the Nanjing battlefield with great fanfare. In fact, each wing of the division had only one brigade, and the other two brigades had been sent to Lushun and Dalian for Hidden (1 regiment of the Japanese army has 3 brigades and some affiliated troops), the actual strength of the 106th Division that arrived on the Nanjing battlefield was only five or six thousand, but the division headquarters, brigade headquarters, and regiment headquarters, etc. The institutions are all available, making the Chinese army mistakenly believe that the 106th Division is on the Nanjing battlefield.

Whether the 106th Division on the Nanjing battlefield has 5000 or 6000 people, the scouts of the Nanjing Army must not be able to figure it out.

By analogy, in fact, only 10 or 6 people were sent to the Nanjing battlefield in the 15 new divisions of the Japanese army, and most of them were quietly sent to the North China battlefield. Not only that, the original [-] divisions of the Japanese army in Central China were also The troops were secretly transferred away, and each division was transferred away from a regiment.

Therefore, the Japanese troops on the battlefield in East China were not the "more than 50" estimated by the Chinese army, but actually only "more than 30". Almost 20 troops were quietly sent to North China by the Japanese army Li Daitao. Luda.

On the other hand, although the Chinese army vaguely noticed and suspected that the Japanese army was playing this trick, they misjudged the timing of the Japanese army's action.

The Japanese army secretly deployed 20 troops to the North China battlefield. The Chinese army mistakenly believed that the Japanese army would not attack until the 20 troops were assembled. In fact, the Japanese army was faster. Only 20 of the 5 troops arrived and 15 returned. While on the road, the Japanese army launched an attack.

As a result, the entire Chinese battlefield has turned around and the situation has changed dramatically.

"Fuck!" After realizing that he was severely slapped by the Japanese, there was no other word to describe Jiang Weiguo's anger, helplessness, and sadness except for this swear word.

The 15 Japanese army is not a large number, but it is enough to make waves on the North China battlefield, and [-] or more Japanese troops will rush to follow up.

The Nanjing Army was helpless, because although there were not as many as 50 Japanese troops surrounding Nanjing City, there were 30. What could the Nanjing Army do?Take the initiative?Right in the arms of the Japanese army, so I can only watch the Japanese army show their power in North China.

Jiang Weiguo still has a little bit of luck. The national army has millions of troops in North China. It should be able to stop the Japanese army and even fight a battle similar to the Pingjin battle. Although it fails, it can still severely damage the Japanese army, right?But the facts are very cruel: the North China National Army was defeated thousands of miles away, and the army was defeated like a mountain.

Under the careful planning of Terauchi Toshida, the commander-in-chief of the North China Front Army of the Japanese Army, the 1st Army of the Front Army was ordered to garrison the occupied area and provide logistical support for the frontline troops (in fact, Lieutenant General Kazuki Kiyoshi, the commander of the 1st Army, and Terauchi Toshiichi were on the military route. There was a big disagreement in the field, so Terauchi Toshiichi deliberately did not send him to participate in the attack), the 2nd Army of the Front Army made a large-scale attack, and the front-line military affairs were all commanded by Lieutenant General Nishio Hisao, the commander of the 2nd Army, and the attacking force was under the jurisdiction of the army. Lieutenant General Rensuke Isotani and Lieutenant General Kenji Doihara of the 10th and 14th Divisions.

Both divisions have been greatly strengthened. According to common sense, the full strength of each of these two divisions should be 2.5. In fact, the actual strength of each of these two divisions is as high as 4.5 or more, and Heavy weapons such as heavy artillery, tanks, and machine guns have been strengthened by more than three times, which can be called a "mechanized reinforcement division", and there are more than 1000 aircraft to assist in the battle.

Before the expedition, the general in the temple personally supported the two division heads: "Isotani-kun, Doihara-kun, whether the imperial army can turn the tide in one fell swoop on the battlefield of China depends largely on you!"

Lieutenant General Doihara said solemnly and honestly: "Please rest assured, Your Excellency, I will definitely fulfill my mission!"

Lieutenant General Ji Gu said arrogantly: "Your Excellency, the thing I regret the most is that my 10th Division was not dispatched to the Nanjing battlefield. Next, I will prove to you that any Chinese army in the 10th Division There are only ants blocking the way!"

The general in the temple laughed: "Okay, I will wait and see and wait for the good news!"

The reason why the general in the temple launched the attack without waiting for the follow-up 15 troops to arrive was not because of his arrogance. Although he was indeed an arrogant and domineering person, he also had shrewd and sophisticated methods and vision.

The general in the temple knows very well that transporting 20 troops is not a trivial matter. Even if we try our best to hide it, there is no guarantee that the news will not leak out, so we need to act in advance. , Only after seizing the opportunity can we seize the upper hand.

The tactics of the generals in the temple are very dangerous and urgent, which is very different from the prudent and safe route of "attack after preparation is complete" taken by some generals.

In fact, the tactic of the general in the temple is not very unusual, that is, the "cone tactic" that the Japanese army often used in the Chinese battlefield in the original history, in other words, the solitary army goes deep, and the Japanese army called it "solitary army breakthrough".

The specific implementation process is also very simple: send a group of elite soldiers who have been strengthened with heavy equipment to go deep into the hinterland of the national defense zone, as a pioneer, capture important places as bridgeheads and bases, disrupt the deployment of the national army and the integrity of the defensive front, and thus A hole was opened in the defense line of the national army, and then the main force of the follow-up army poured in.

This kind of tactic is actually a big taboo for military strategists, because the troops that are alone in depth can easily be surrounded and wiped out.

If this tactic is used on the European battlefield, the Japanese army that "breaks through alone" will inevitably die without a place to bury it, because the German, British, and French troops that came together and encircled them are all modernized, mechanized, and even higher than the Japanese army. The European army will strangle the isolated Japanese army into powder, but it is a different matter on the Chinese battlefield. Although the Chinese army is more numerous than the Japanese army, it can be mechanized, firepower assigned, air power, and the number of artillery and heavy weapons. It is far inferior to the Japanese army, which allows the Japanese army of a mere division to break into the defensive area of ​​10,000+ Chinese troops without any scruples, and often retreat in the end. The Japanese army had no choice.

In the words of the general in the temple: "The imperial army broke into the hinterland of the Chinese army alone, just like a steel needle piercing tofu, and then turning left and right, the steel needle will naturally stir the tofu to pieces!"

In the original history, the famous Taierzhuang victory was produced because of this tactical thinking of the Japanese army.

The 40 million troops of the fifth theater of the national army defended the Jinpu line and the important town of Xuzhou, while the arrogant Japanese army only sent the fifth and tenth divisions with a total strength of only 5 to carry out a "solitary breakthrough". The whole army was almost wiped out.

This is what the general in the temple used at this time.

The 10th Division and the 14th Division have a total strength of more than 9, with two to three hundred heavy artillery pieces, two to three hundred tanks, and more than one thousand vehicles. There is no doubt that these two groups of Japanese troops are concentrated on one point, except for the Nanjing Army , Almost all other units of the national army are difficult to parry.

The first to bear the brunt was the 1st Army of Song Zheyuan in southern Hebei.

After the Battle of Pingjin, Pingjin fell. Song Zheyuan originally planned to gather his troops to Baoding in the central part of Hebei Province, so as to stabilize and keep central and southern Hebei. All the way to the south, as a comparison, most of the elite troops of the national army and those who are not afraid of sacrifice have lost more than half on the Pingjin battlefield. Their morale and vigor have been greatly frustrated. Avoiding war and preserving strength, none of the troops would go to the front to withstand the menacing Japanese army, and they fled southward in a swarm. As a result, the "Baoding Defense War" in Song Zheyuan's concept did not start at all. In just one day, Baoding was taken lightly, and then another hundred miles of land was plundered again. It was not until the capture of Shimen City (Shijiazhuang) that the Japanese army stopped attacking.

The participating national troops eventually withdrew to Handan, Xingtai and other areas in southern Hebei, and four-fifths of Hebei Province fell into the hands of the Japanese army.

Song Zheyuan is a person with very complicated thoughts. He is patriotic, but he has deep-rooted warlord thinking. For warlords, the lifeblood of standing in troubled times is the army and territory. Most of the losses were lost. Although the Battle of Pingjin won Song Zheyuan the praise of the whole country, the enthusiastic praise of the people, and unprecedented glory, in Song Zheyuan's heart, those were all imaginary, and the army and territory were the real valuable things.

Seeing the only palm-sized land in southern Hebei and the dilapidated army, Song Zheyuan wanted to cry without tears. He was eager to expand his army and expand his territory, but he no longer had this opportunity. It is the occupied area of ​​the Japanese. Shandong in the east is Han Fuju's territory, Shanxi in the west is Yan Xishan's territory, and Henan Province in the south is the Central Army's territory. It is completely compressed in one size and has no room for development. As for the army , the land is too small, the tax revenue is too little, he can't afford to support the army, and he doesn't have an arsenal in his hands, all of these are destined to make it impossible for him to make a comeback.

Song Zheyuan knew very well that although the Japanese let him go temporarily, it was only temporarily. Once the Japanese continued to go south, he would be the first to die.

At this time, it is not that Song Zheyuan has not wavered, nor has he tried to survive by "special means". The Japanese hinted at him, and Han Fuju also wooed him. Before the big right and wrong of the country and the nation, he still held the final bottom line. He did not agree to the Japanese's inducement to surrender, but just pretended to be a snake with the Japanese to delay time. In order to get some benefits from Chiang Kai-shek, Song Zheyuan informed Chiang Kai-shek behind his back and betrayed Han Fuju.

).

Because Song Zheyuan contributed a lot in the Battle of Pingjin, even though he was from the local army, Chiang Kai-shek did not kill the donkey or abolish his troops, but he would definitely not let him expand the army, but only awarded him honors, promoted him, bounty and so on.

After the Battle of Pingjin, Chiang Kai-shek allocated 300 million yuan to Song Zheyuan, part of which was awards, part of which was military expenses, and the rest was used to build fortifications in southern Hebei.

After Song Zheyuan received this huge sum of money, he distributed part of it to the officers and soldiers of his subordinates, and another part to more than a dozen general-level officers to win over people's hearts, because the 1st Army is currently crumbling, and the internal officers and soldiers are getting more and more unstable. Song Zheyuan saw more and more officers and soldiers intending to join the Central Army, and was anxious in his heart. He had to win people's hearts, so he didn't have much money left to build fortifications.

Obviously, although the 1st Army at this time had [-] people on the surface, it was completely devastated.

At 3 a.m. on March 3, the long-planned and well-prepared Japanese 3th and 10th Divisions suddenly stormed Handan and Xingtai. The 14st Army fell into a complete collapse within just one hour, and all units were defeated by the Japanese. Caught off guard, panicked, or even collapsed at the touch of a button, invincible.

The root cause is that firstly, the combat effectiveness of the 1st Army is not as good as before. The veterans have lost almost all of their veterans. Elite officers are either casualties or people are unstable, and their weapons and equipment are also very scarce. Second, the 1st Army is almost defenseless against this. He will continue to use troops in Nanjing, but he did not expect to attack him suddenly. The third is that the internal thinking of the 1st Army is chaotic, and Song Zheyuan is also depressed. Fourth, the Japanese army is indeed very powerful.

For so many reasons, the 1st Army fell apart quickly after the war started.

At 4:20 in the morning, the 14th Division of the Japanese Army captured Xingtai;

At 4:50 in the morning, the 10th Division of the Japanese Army captured Handan;

After dawn, the Japanese army swept through thousands of troops like a broken bamboo. It took less than four hours to capture the remaining southern Hebei area in Hebei Province, completely occupied the entire territory of Hebei Province, and completely defeated the 1st Army of Song Zheyuan's Department.

The Japanese army suffered less than 1 casualties, killed more than [-] people from the First Army, captured more than [-] people, and scattered more than [-] people.

"How did this happen? How did this happen?" Song Zheyuan muttered to himself after being sent by the guards to Daming County in the southernmost part of Hebei Province, looking at the remnants of his army who were running away in panic all over the mountains and plains, his mind went blank. , Eyes straightened, he knew that the last thing he had was gone, suddenly, he fell to the ground, numb all over, unable to speak, and was hurriedly driven by the guards to the territory of Henan Province.

After examination, due to extreme depression, anxiety, and emotional over-excitement, Song Zheyuan had a sudden cerebral thrombosis and stroke. Since then, he sadly left the military and political circles and the stage of the Republic of China, and died in Chongqing two years later.

The Great North China Collapse is just the beginning at this time.

Chapter 323

After the entire territory of Hebei Province fell, Shanxi Province, Shandong Province, and Henan Province were all exposed to the Japanese soldiers.

After the Japanese army captured southern Hebei, the first war zone of the national army had already existed in name only (the entire territory of Hebei Province fell, and most of Chahar Province fell). The 10,000+ troops in this theater fell apart overnight. However, due to a sudden cerebral hemorrhage, he was unable to continue to command. Facing the overall situation of the defeat of the army, Lu Zhonglin, the deputy commander, was naturally helpless. to another place.

According to common sense, the troops in the first war zone have three places to go, Shanxi, Shandong, and Henan. However, Yan Xishan, the commander-in-chief of the Shanxi-Sui Army, did not welcome Lu Zhonglin's troops because Yan Xishan did not want his Shanxi Province to be "mixed with sand." Liu Zhi and Jiang Dingwen from the province welcomed it, but Lu Zhonglin did not dare to go, because Henan Province is the territory of the Central Army, and the withdrawal of the 1st Group Army to the territory of the Central Army would definitely be annexed. After hesitating for a long time, Lu Zhonglin led his troops Withdrew to Shandong Province, because Han Fuju, chairman of the military and political affairs of Shandong Province, was born in the Northwest Army and was one of the Thirteen Taibaos of the Northwest Army. One), the two are considered to be of the same family, obviously, it is the best choice for Lu Zhonglin to lead his troops to retreat to Han Fuju's territory.

Han Fuju welcomed Lu Zhonglin's arrival very much. He was short of cannon fodder to stop the Japanese army, but he had no time to hold a welcome party for Lu Zhonglin, because it took only a few hours for the Japanese army to take down southern Hebei. With great speed, and non-stop, continue to launch the attack of plowing the court and sweeping holes. The second goal is Shandong Province.

When Lu Zhonglin led his troops to withdraw from Daming County to Yanggu County in the northwest of Shandong Province, the Japanese army almost followed Lu Zhonglin's ass and killed them, and then aggressively attacked Shandong Province.

Before the attack, the heads of the two divisions of the Japanese army had the following conversation:

Lieutenant General Kenji Doihara, head of the 14th Division: "Isotani-kun, you've been fighting fiercely for several hours, shall you take a breath?"

Lieutenant General Isoya Rensuke, head of the 10th Division: "Where to breathe? Why are you breathing? You are so fast! Don't waste time!"

Lieutenant General Doihara: "The soldiers are very tired, and a lot of ammunition supplies have been consumed..."

Lieutenant General Isoya: "The Chinese army is even more exhausted! The ammunition supplies of the Chinese army are even more consumed!"

Lieutenant General Doihara: "Are we going to attack Shandong Province like this? The battle line is too long! At least wait for the follow-up troops to come?"

Lieutenant General Isoya: "Wait, wait! So what if the battle line is stretched? The Chinese army has become a frightened bird. Could it be that they can still cut off our retreat? We must attack like an avalanche! Attack! Attack again! It's the style of the Imperial Army!"

Lieutenant General Doihara: "Our first stage task is to take down southern Hebei. It is too hasty to attack Shandong Province now. The deeper we go, the more Chinese troops will be there, and the more dangerous our situation will be. Mr. Isoya, calm down..."

Lieutenant General Isoya: "Doihara-kun, why are you dawdling like an old woman with bound feet in China? If you don't try your best to expand the results of the war when the Chinese army is in chaos and collapses, what are we waiting for? If you dare not continue to attack , Forget it, without your 14th Division, my 10th Division can hit Jinan and Xuzhou by itself! That's it! I don't have time to waste my words with you! My division is in front of the city , your division will pick up the ready-made in the back!"

The 10th Division hardly took a breath, and chased and killed Lu Zhonglin's troops at a marching speed. They chased and killed Lu Zhonglin's troops from Hebei Province all the way into Shandong Province. The 14th Division had to follow closely behind and attack Shandong Province together with them.