I am Jiang Weiguo in World War II

"All brothers! Listen to my orders!" Zhang Yun stood high on a tank and yelled, "Fengtian kills the thief!"

"Fengtian kills the thieves!" The whole regiment swarmed into the city amidst the roar of killing, and easily dispersed a brigade of the blocking Japanese army, and rushed into Jinan City. Within two hours, the 172nd and 173rd regiments also arrived successively. Almost without any strong resistance, they rushed into Jinan city in an overwhelming manner.

"Don't worry about other things!" Zhang Yun roared, "Go to the train station! Grab supplies! Quick! Blow up the Yellow River Bridge! Quick!"

Under the unbelievable and ecstatic eyes of the citizens of Jinan, the officers and soldiers were furious and rushed to kill with all their strength. The division of labor of each unit was clear and targeted. Yellow River Bridge.

With a bang of thunder and thunder, the Yellow River Bridge was torn apart in the big explosion, and the Japanese army's Jinpu line was cut off. The officers and soldiers who rushed to the railway station and the Japanese military supplies warehouse were overjoyed to find that the Japanese military supplies in front of them were piled up like a mountain. It was transported by the Japanese army from the Northeast, North Korea and other places, and was going to be transported to the front line of Xuzhou.

Although some of them were destroyed by Japanese arson and detonation under Goujitiaoqiang, more than half of them fell into the hands of officers and soldiers intact.

There are about 2000 national army paratroopers airborne to Jinan. This is a very large number. In order to ensure the maximum strength of the paratroopers, the paratrooper regiment also put the reserve paratroopers who are still in training into this battle. Many of them are in the sky over Jinan The skydiving paratroopers had just learned to parachute. Dozens of reserve paratroopers fell to their deaths because they sharpened their guns before the battle. When the 17th Division attacked the city, there were about 1300 paratroopers in the city. Among the other 700 people, more than 300 were airdropped to Outside the city (some were thrown into the Yellow River and drowned), others were killed accidentally or in battle. The 17th Division that entered the city had more than 17 troops. There were 5000 casualties in the guerrilla warfare, but Shandong Province is densely populated, and there are many Qilu men who do not want to be subjugated slaves in the area where the troops are active to join the 17th Division, so the division is still more than [-] troops at this time.

Although there are 17 Japanese soldiers in Jinan City, 81 soldiers are engineering soldiers and heavy soldiers with low combat effectiveness, and the Nanjing Army has strong support from the citizens in the city. The number of Japanese troops is several times that of the Japanese Army, and the individual weapons are much more than the Japanese Army. The [-]th Division and the Paratrooper Regiment of the Japanese Army killed the Japanese army in the city in a short time. The commander of the [-]st Regiment Toyoichi Matsuura was killed in the fierce battle. The commander-in-chief of the Japanese Army in Jinan, Major General Junmu Harumatsu, had a chance to escape from Jinan. However, he rejected the persuasion of his subordinates, "The imperial army has always been invincible on the battlefield of China. Only the imperial army captured the city of China. How can the Chinese army take back the city occupied by the imperial army? Besides, it is still like Jinan." provincial capital city.

Even if I escape with my life, I will definitely be ruined, so I might as well apologise with death!" After Major General Gunmu said these words sadly, he ordered some Japanese troops to escape from Jinan City with the flag of the 81st Regiment and his own head, and then cut open his stomach. suicide.

In the evening, Zhao Shoushan sent two telegrams, one to Jiang Weiguo and one to Chiang Kai-shek, with the same content: Our division has recovered Jinan through careful planning, careful implementation, air support, and hard work by officers and soldiers.

Jiang Weiguo was overjoyed, and Chiang Kai-shek was so excited that he couldn't help himself. What does it mean to recover Jinan?At first, Chiang Kai-shek didn't believe Zhao Shoushan's report at all, because it was too unimaginable. Over the past year of the War of Resistance, the national army had been losing ground. The Central Committee recovered Yangzhou and Gaoyou. These two places were really recovered, but they were only ordinary county towns. The 17th Division recovered Jinan, the capital of Shandong Province, a big city, and an important city. Politically, propaganda It is hard to overstate the positive significance brought by the Internet, public opinion, and international perspective. First of all, it can greatly inspire the morale of the army and the people, and greatly strengthen the belief and confidence of the military and civilians across the country and all walks of life in the war to the end and the victory of the war. Because the national army recovered Jinan, the capital of Shandong Province, by itself, proving to all walks of life in the country that the national army can win battles, recover the country, and defeat the Japanese. Secondly, in terms of diplomacy, the national government can greatly deter the Japanese. , against the arrogance of the Japanese, forcing the Japanese to make concessions at the negotiating table, and at the same time further make Germany, the United States, Britain, France, the Soviet Union and other powers look at China with admiration, no longer despise the Chinese government and the Chinese army, and greatly enhance China's International status, winning an international environment, international conditions and external assistance that are more conducive to China's resistance to Japan; of course, Chiang Kai-shek, the supreme leader, will definitely increase his prestige because of this matter.

There are so many things, and the benefits in all aspects are immeasurable.

Therefore, although Zhao Shoushan was born in the "local faction" and "non-identical army" of the Northwest Army, and was pro-Communist, and even supported "capturing Chiang" during the Xi'an Incident, since he has made such great achievements, Chiang Kai-shek, as the supreme leader, cannot be ignored. It is definitely not enough to give a good reward.

According to common sense, awarding Zhao Shoushan a Blue Sky and White Sun Medal is too low. Generous, he first ordered the promotion of Zhao Shoushan to lieutenant general (in this way, even if Chiang Kai-shek did not give Zhao Shoushan a substantive award, outsiders would not say that the chairman of the general committee treated meritorious ministers badly, of course, Zhao Shoushan changed from a major general to a lieutenant general. What is too much value, anyway, I am still a teacher), and then sent a telegram, praising Zhao Shoushan a lot, using all kinds of beautiful words, claiming that he is "the leader of the country" and "national hero" and so on.

Zhao Shoushan was not a greedy person. He repaid Chiang Kai-shek very frankly, claiming that the reason why the national army was able to recover Jinan was that Jiang Weiguo should be the first hero, and Zhang Yun, the head of the 171st regiment, should be the second hero.

Regarding Zhao Shoushan's "kind words", Chiang Kai-shek immediately borrowed the donkey from the slope, awarded Zhao Shoushan a Baoding Medal, Zhang Yun a Blue Sky and White Sun Medal, and bestowed a Zhongzheng Sword.

Chiang Kai-shek immediately ordered the national government's propaganda agency to publicize the major victory of "the national army's recovery of Jinan". That night, the three towns of Wuhan became a city that never sleeps, and the whole city was full of quarrels. The enthusiasm for the war of resistance was stimulated again.

When the whole of Wuhan was shrouded in a long torch parade and the deafening sound of firecrackers and fireworks, Chiang Kai-shek and Chiang Wei-guo exchanged urgent telegrams.

"Father, the national army can win battles. It can not only recover Jinan, but also keep Xuzhou.

As long as you believe in your National Revolutionary Army, trust Commander Li and other front-line commanders, let them do it, and give them maximum support, they will definitely not let you down!" Jiang Weiguo said in the telegram, " Therefore, the Xuzhou battle should continue to be fought, clench your teeth and stick to it, and we will win!"

Of course Chiang Kai-shek understood what Jiang Weiguo meant. First, let him not intervene indiscriminately and command remotely.

Because Jinan was liberated, Chiang Kai-shek did regain some confidence, but he still had some hesitation and concerns: "Wei'er, what do you think of Jinan? How will the battle of Xuzhou proceed?"

Jiang Weiguo had already prepared a draft, so he was confident: "Father, if the Japanese army does not attack Jinan and continues to concentrate on attacking Xuzhou, it will be difficult to keep Xuzhou, but we are still the winners of the Xuzhou battle, because we lost Xuzhou, but regained Jinan; If the Japanese army counterattacks Jinan, then at least one division of the Japanese army will be diverted to Jinan, and Jinan is likely to fall again, but the pressure on the national army on the Xuzhou battlefield will be greatly reduced. Xuzhou victory.

Therefore, in any case, since Jinan was liberated, the battle situation in Xuzhou is already a bright future for the national army, I hope my father will trust the soldiers on the front line!"

After thinking for a while, Chiang Kai-shek asked: "Do you think Jinan is likely to fall again?"

Jiang Weiguo replied: "The biggest reason why the 17th Division regained Jinan was that the Japanese army was unprepared for this and the Japanese army in Jinan was empty, so the 17th Division could take advantage of the situation. With strength, one brigade is definitely not enough, at least one division. The 17th Division is completely alone in defending the isolated city. It is basically a repeat of the Nanjing Army and the Battle of Nanjing. It is not comparable to Nanjing City, so if the Japanese army counterattacks Jinan with all its strength, Jinan will be lost.

Jinan is surrounded by Japanese-occupied areas in all directions, the main force of the National Army cannot reinforce the 17th Division, and the National Army has no strength to reinforce the 17th Division!"

After thinking about it again, Chiang Kai-shek asked Jiang Weiguo: "According to your opinion, the battle of Xuzhou should continue?"

Jiang Weiguo's attitude is very straightforward: "For sure! We must continue to fight! Giving up the retreat now will cause too much harm. First, the 10th Division cannot be eaten. Second, Xuzhou must be lost. Third, Jinan must be lost. We will It was a crushing defeat. Although the Taierzhuang victory was indeed achieved, on the whole, the Japanese won the Xuzhou battle.

On the contrary, if the fight continues, the best outcome is that Xuzhou will be saved, the Japanese army will be severely injured, and Jinan will also hold on until the peace talks and armistice are reached, then we will truly win a big victory.

Next, on the negotiating table, at least the Japanese army can spit out one or two more provinces!"

After reading this telegram from Jiang Weiguo, Chiang Kai-shek stood up excitedly, paced back and forth, his heart trembling: "Yes, if you can kill three birds with one stone, protect Xuzhou, recover Jinan, and severely injure the Japanese army, then the next step is to attack the Japanese army." The national army is very good for the situation in the national government!" Such a wonderful prospect has to make Chiang Kai-shek's heart beat, if this is the case, the battle of Xuzhou can be called a complete victory!

After repeatedly weighing the pros and cons, the excited Chiang Kai-shek formally made up his determination to continue fighting to the end in Xuzhou.

In the city of Jinan, Zhao Shoushan is falling into extreme unease. He has taken Jinan, but what's next?Wuhan has already begun to publicize the great victory of "Jinan Great Victory" and "Recovering Jinan". ""Republic of China Zhao Zilong", the 17th Division and the Paratrooper Regiment wiped out about 4000 Japanese soldiers in the Battle of Jinan, but when it came to the government's propaganda department, it turned into "killing more than [-] enemies."

Zhao Shoushan felt that this scene was just like a dream, and it even made him feel dumbfounded. He never thought that he would become the commander of the national army's first recovery of the fallen city by chance. , an Air Force transport plane flew from Xuzhou to the sky over Jinan in the dark, and dropped a heavy package. When I opened it, I found a brand new lieutenant general uniform, a bunch of medals and a Zhongzheng sword inside. The lieutenant general uniform was naturally It belonged to Zhao Shoushan, but Zhao Shoushan was not in the mood to wear that lieutenant general uniform at all. He was worried, how should he defend Jinan next?

Although Jinan was recovered by the 17th Division, it must have taken advantage of loopholes. Moreover, the original mission of the 17th Division in Shandong Province was mobile warfare and guerrilla warfare. Now it is about to fight urban defense warfare. Jinan City has no fortifications at all. The 17th Division must not abandon Jinan. Firstly, it will not be able to contain the Japanese army and reinforce the fifth war zone. Secondly, Chairman Chiang Kai-shek will slap himself in the face. He is promoting "the recovery of Jinan by the national army". If the 17th Division abandons Jinan , where is the face of the chairman?

"It's easy to fight the world, but it's hard to defend the world!" Zhao Shoushan smiled wryly.

"What's so difficult?" Zhang Yun, who ran in to make a report, looked elated, "Master, I just counted it, good guy! We made a fortune! In the train station and the Japanese army warehouse, we seized enough equipment for the Japanese army." The armaments of the division! There are 500 rifles, and the ammunition is innumerable! A conservative estimate is that there are [-] million rounds of bullets alone! Haha! Great harvest!"

Zhao Shoushan looked at Zhang Yun thoughtfully: "If there are so many weapons and ammunition, we can only arm the common people in Jinan to increase our strength. However, how can the common people fight?" He was worried.

Chapter 367 Iron and Blood Battle (2)

The 17th Division of the Nanjing Army, which attacked Jinan, had no time to catch its breath, and started preparing for war overnight.

There is no doubt that the Japanese army will counterattack Jinan and will come soon.

The 17th Division wanted to stick to Jinan, and there were many difficulties. The two biggest difficulties were: Jinan had no fortifications, and the number of officers and soldiers defending the city was limited.

Zhao Shoushan took an inventory of the troops. Excluding the dead and wounded, he had about 1.3 combatable soldiers in his hands, divided into two parts. The paratroopers in the paratrooper regiment had about 1300 paratroopers, and the rest belonged to the 17th Division, including More than 9000 veterans and more than 4000 young and middle-aged men newly recruited by the 17th Division when they fought in Shandong Province, among the [-] veterans, [-] infantry and [-] cavalry (during the raid on Jinan, the cavalry did not participate in the siege and street fighting, so casualties slight).

"If the Japanese army comes with a brigade, it can hold it, but if the Japanese army comes with a division, it won't be able to hold it!" Zhao Shoushan thought over and over again. At this time, he had already decided that the 17th Division was destined to be wiped out. Jinan, Jinan, will definitely be taken again by the Japanese army, and the 17th Division will definitely be wiped out by the Japanese army on the Jinan battlefield.

Zhao Shoushan got rid of distracting thoughts, he only thought about one thing, how could the 17th division last longer?How to contain more Japanese troops?Undoubtedly, the longer the 17th Division lasts in Jinan and the more it restrains the Japanese army, the more beneficial it will be for the Xuzhou battle.

"The life and death of a country that benefits the country should be avoided because of misfortune and good fortune?" Zhao Shoushan sighed, "It's time to be benevolent for the country!" Thinking that he was the first general of the national army to recover a large city that had fallen since the War of Resistance, Zhao Shoushan was relieved in his heart, and died in such a battle, and he died without regret.

The 17th Division needs to race against time to do two things, one is to build the fortifications in Jinan, and the other is to "expand the army."

At this time, Jinan City had a population of more than 70. With such a huge and rich treasure house of human resources, local materials were obviously the only countermeasure for the 17th Division.

Under the night, the city of Jinan was brightly lit, and the officers and soldiers lit piles of blazing fires on every street and intersection, illuminating the whole city brightly, and the officers and soldiers began to perform their duties under the mobilization of Zhao Shoushan and other officers. Some went to guard the natural danger of the Yellow River in the north of the city, some went to the mountains and hills in the south of the city to fortify, some went to patrol the fields in the east and west of the city, some maintained law and order in the city, and some searched for Japanese stragglers or traitors in the city. Some began to dig fortifications. Although the officers and soldiers were exhausted after marching for a day and fighting a battle, they dragged their tired bodies and continued to work. The cooking soldiers prepared dinner and sent it to the positions of the troops. The peppers were so hot that the officers and soldiers were sweating and their mouths were burning. To refresh themselves, many officers took on an important task: recruiting new soldiers and migrant workers in the city.

These officers are highly educated, so they can speak well. They posted notices and gave speeches everywhere in the city, encouraging citizens to stand up bravely and fight with the national army:

"Fathers and folks in Jinan! We are the 17th Division of the National Army, and we have recovered Jinan! However, the Japanese army is about to counterattack Jinan! We are short of troops, and I hope you will help us! Either join the migrant workers, help us build fortifications, or join the Let's take up our guns and fight the Japanese devils! As long as we hold on for a while, the national army will come!" (The last sentence is actually a lie.

）

"My compatriots in Jinan! Do you still want to be enslaved by the Japanese? Do you still want to be bullied by the Japanese? If you don't want to, just fight with us! Defend Jinan together! Otherwise, the Japanese will occupy Jinan again!"

"My compatriots in Jinan! Have you all forgotten the Jinan tragedy ten years ago? Do you still want to wait for the Japanese to kill in Jinan again? If you don't want to, then defend Jinan with us!"

"Shandong people don't have a seed? Don't the big men in Shandong are all cowards? Back then, the [-] heroes in Liangshan came from your Shandong. By now, the Shandong people have no blood? Those who have seeds, fight with us Jap!"

"You Shandong is the hometown of Confucius! If you are as timid as a mouse, I am afraid that Confucius will be ashamed! Look at the people from Shanxi! The Japanese invaded Shanxi, and the people from Shanxi fought to the end. What about you people from Shandong? ?Your Chairman Han was frightened by the Japanese devils, and Qilu land was occupied by the Japanese in less than a month, and Jinan was even captured by more than 1000 Japanese devils! Aren’t you ashamed? The devils broke into Hebei, Hebei people fought bloody devils, devils invaded Shanxi, Shanxi people fought bloody devils, devils invaded Jiangsu, Jiangsu people fought bloody devils, and people from Sichuan, Yunnan, Guangxi, and Hunan all went to the battlefield to fight devils desperately Don’t you Shandong people have the guts?”

"Look at the Northeast people! The Northeast Army lost the Northeast with a single shot, and now weeping with regret. More than 3000 million Northeast people have become Japanese subjugated slaves. Do you want Shandong to become the second Northeast?"

Under the call, encouragement, and encouragement of the Nanjing Army, a large number of enthusiastic Jinan residents rushed to sign up to assist the army in defending the city:

"Defend Jinan! Defend our homeland!"

"Don't let the devils enter Jinan for the second time!"

"Who said we Shandong people are cowards? We have to settle accounts with the Japanese!"

Excited shouts resounded through Jinan City under the night, and long queues lined up at the recruitment office of the 17th Division in an instant, and countless young and middle-aged residents who were aroused with enthusiasm volunteered to assist the 17th Division in combat.

Many of the officers and soldiers of the 17th Division (except the Majiajun cavalry and Shandong recruits newly recruited during guerrilla warfare) were from the Nanjing Army. They knew the traditions and specific methods of mobilizing the masses of the Nanjing Army. About [-] strong young and middle-aged men served as reserve soldiers, and another [-] to [-] men were recruited as migrant workers, and began to dig trenches and build fortifications in full swing.

There were soul-stirring and heroic scenes in Jinan City: The 17th Division must have no money to distribute to the militia workers as military pay or rewards. The militia workers who signed up to assist the 17th Division in Jinan City were all voluntary. Holding torches, the migrant workers rushed to their respective combat or work positions according to the orders of the officers of the 17th Division. Parents, wives and children ate pots of milk and prepared meals for their own soldiers who were about to go to battle.

Migrant workers were organized into teams and dug trenches all over the city, and militiamen were dispersed and added to the army, and weapons and ammunition were distributed at various assembly points.

"A group of three! Three people, one gun!" shouted the officer of the 17th Division distributing weapons. "The first person gets a gun and thirty bullets, and the second person gets two grenades and thirty bullets. The third person receives thirty bullets! Remember! After participating in the battle, the first person is responsible for shooting, the second person is responsible for throwing the grenade, and the third person is responsible for carrying the ammunition! The first person is killed or injured, and the second person takes Keep shooting, the second person is killed or injured, and the third person picks up the gun and keeps shooting! Don't mess up!"

The 17th Division seized a large number of Japanese weapons and ammunition in Jinan City, all of which were transported by the Japanese army from the Northeast and North Korea. There were not many weapons. After all, the Japanese army on the front line needed bullets more than guns, but there were a lot of ammunition, and there were millions of rounds of bullets. , There are tens of thousands of hand grenades, and the Japanese army has about [-] [-]-type rifles, so the [-] militiamen in Jinan City use one rifle for three people on average.

Since there is no time to train these militiamen, the militiamen are not formed separately as troops, but are supplemented into the troops. According to the "one-three principle", that is, one regular army soldier is matched with three militiamen (the three militiamen are in the same group), and the battle begins. Before the battle, the regular army soldiers sharpened their guns and taught the militiamen how to use rifles and grenades. After the battle started, the militiamen followed the regular army soldiers to participate in the battle.

"Load the bullets like this, withdraw the bullets like this, and put the bayonet like this, do you see clearly?" In various positions, migrant workers were sweating profusely digging trenches, and the soldiers eagerly taught the militiamen around them, "Throw the grenade like this, when shooting, Aim at three points and one line! Don't hit randomly! Remember, the devil's marksmanship is very accurate, don't show your head easily, when you fight the bayonet with the devil, the four of us will fight together, and the devil's bayonet is also very good..."

The militiamen all stared wide-eyed, watching, listening, and learning seriously.

The Chinese army preparing to defend Jinan is not only the 17th Division, the Paratrooper Regiment, and the Jinan Militia, but also [-] or [-] troops, large and small, are converging towards Jinan City. These troops are guerrillas behind enemy lines of the national army in Shandong Province.

Contrary to the perceptions of the general public in later generations, the guerrillas behind the enemy lines during the War of Resistance were not only unique to the Chinese Communist Army, but also the National Army (the guerrillas behind the enemy lines of the National Army were very different from the guerrillas behind the enemy lines of the Chinese Communist Army. war, while the latter focuses on rooting the masses and developing base areas).

Right now, the main force on the outskirts of the national army cannot get close to Jinan, but the guerrillas behind enemy lines in Shandong Province can do this.

Of course, these guerrillas were completely different from Jiang Weiguo's 17th Division. They were real guerrillas and had no strength to fight head-to-head with the Japanese army. The 17th Division was an elite regular army unit that practiced mobile warfare behind enemy lines.

In order to strengthen the strength of the Jinan defenders, Jiang Weiguo racked his brains and sent several telegrams to the Wuhan Military Commission, asking the Military Commission to order the guerrillas of the national army in Shandong Province and closer to Jinan to go to Jinan for reinforcements. The large guerrillas have thousands of people, and the small ones have only a hundred people, but the accumulation of small amounts of sand forms a tower. The most important thing is that the members of these guerrillas have actual combat experience, and their combat effectiveness must exceed that of Jinan, who joined the army temporarily. Among the militia, there are five relatively large guerrillas (all guerrillas behind enemy lines of the National Army), namely the 17th Brigade of Security of the National Army Shandong Province led by Dou Laigeng, and the Lubei Guerrilla Army of the National Army led by Fu Zhonggui. , the National Army’s Jimo Anti-Japanese Guerrilla Team led by Han Bingchen, the National Army’s Fifth War Zone Shandong Independent Guerrilla Team led by Zhou Fu, and the National Army’s Shandong Railway Destruction Corps led by Gao Daoxian. (Because the Japanese army quickly occupied Shandong Province and eagerly launched the Xuzhou Battle after occupying Shandong Province, they had no time and sufficient troops to "sweep" Shandong Province, so the guerrillas of the national army behind enemy lines in Shandong Province were relatively large, and their numbers were not large. few).

After receiving the order from the Wuhan Military Commission, these guerrillas quickly gathered in Jinan. Some successfully entered Jinan City, some encountered the Japanese army on the way and were forced to retreat, and some waited for an opportunity to attack the Japanese army on the outskirts of Jinan City to support Jinan City. There were about 8000 members of the garrison and the guerrillas of the national army behind enemy lines that entered Jinan City one after another.

When the Japanese army counterattacked Jinan, there were as many as 8 Chinese troops preparing to defend Jinan. Of course, the [-] army was "a lot of water." it's the same.

When the general in the temple learned that Jinan was captured by the Chinese army, he was as shocked as a thunderbolt from the blue sky. The Japanese army lost Jinan, and the negative effects brought about were huge. Among other things, the Yellow River Bridge was bombed The Jinpu line was cut off. This is enough to make the military significance of the Japanese army's Xuzhou battle no longer exist. After going to Xuzhou, Jinan was lost, and the Jinpu line was still in a broken state. How could the Japanese army in North China and the Japanese army in Central China be connected as one?As for other negative impacts, the general in the temple was even more apprehensive and scalp numb.

The chief of staff of the North China Front Army, Major General Hebian Zhengsan, and Deputy Chief of Staff Akira Muto led a group of staff officers. After urgent and repeated research, they believed that if the imperial army did not recover Jinan immediately, first of all, the Jinpu line would be cut off. It is difficult to transport ordnance and supplies to the front line of Xuzhou. At the same time, due to the harassment of the submarines of the Chinese Navy, the imperial army's sea transportation line has been greatly damaged, and the sea route is difficult. Secondly, the loss of Jinan by the imperial army was the first time that the Chinese army seized a large city occupied by the imperial army in this war, and it was also a provincial capital city, which had a great impact on the honor, morale and belief of the imperial army The imperial army's fighting power will be underestimated by the world powers from now on, and the imperial jihad will also be hit in terms of public support. If it can't defeat Nanjing, it has made it difficult for the imperial army to continue to claim that "the attack must be conquered" and lost Jinan. , it will make it difficult for the imperial army to continue to claim that "the defense must be strong", and the reputation of the imperial army will be smeared; third, if the imperial army captures Xuzhou in this battle of Xuzhou, but loses Jinan, then the imperial army The purpose of opening up the Jinpu line was not achieved at all, and it was meaningless to capture Xuzhou. After the battle ended with the imperial army capturing Xuzhou, it could barely be called a draw, but in the eyes of third countries (mainly Germany), the imperial army was defeated. Fang, which is very detrimental to the imperial government.

The general in the temple pondered over and over again, and asked: "If the imperial army counterattacks Jinan, how much troops will it need to invest?"

Colonel Akira Muto replied: "At least one division.

The Chinese army attacking Jinan should be a division with more than [-] troops, if only one brigade is sent, it may be difficult to win quickly, and the war may fall into a stalemate!"

The general in the temple pondered: "It seems that we can only take one from the 15th or 17th Division to recover Jinan..."

"Your Excellency, General!" Major General He Bian said bitterly, "I'm afraid it will be difficult to get out, as you know, Shandong Province borders Hebei Province, Henan Province, Anhui Province, and Jiangsu Province. At present, only Hebei Province is completely controlled by the imperial army. The three provinces of Henan, Anhui, and Jiangsu are still in the hands of the Chinese army. The Chinese army in eastern Henan, northern Anhui, and northern Jiangsu has posed a great threat to Shandong Province. On the one hand, we must eliminate the anti-Japanese forces in Shandong Province. If a division is dispatched to attack Jinan, the strength of the troops will be greatly stretched. What's more, the 15th and 17th divisions are not full of personnel, so it is really difficult to undertake this task!"

"what do you mean..."

"Your Excellency, you can only draw a division from the imperial army that participated in the Xuzhou Battle!"

"How can this work?" The general in the temple couldn't accept it. "The imperial army on the Xuzhou battlefield is also very tight. I still need to eat the main force of the Chinese army on the Xuzhou battlefield and transfer a division? I'm afraid..." He was worried, "Maybe , we can leave Jinan temporarily, and it will not be too late to recover Jinan after Xuzhou is taken..."

"Your Excellency, please forgive me, this is inappropriate!" Akira Muto objected, "If Jinan is not recovered quickly, the Jinpu line will always be interrupted, and the imperial army on the Xuzhou battlefield will be on its back. The Chinese army in Jinan can also get enough time to build fortifications and prepare for battle. If not, the main force of the Chinese army in Luxi will invade Shandong Province and join Jinan. At that time, it will be difficult to regain Jinan! You can’t lose sight of the other!”

"Muto-kun's words are very true!" Major General Hebian agreed, "On the other hand, after the imperial army wins the Xuzhou battle, they will be exhausted and severely injured. It will be a long night dreaming to regain Jinan later!"

"You mean..." The general in the temple took a deep breath.

"Don't stop, don't accept the chaos!" Colonel Akira Muto firmly said, "Deploy a complete main division and quickly recover Jinan! Just let the imperial army on the Xuzhou battlefield persist for a few more days!"

The general in the temple walked back and forth with his hands behind his back, thinking over and over again. Finally, he nodded helplessly: "It seems that this is the only way to go!" The stern telegram scolded him to recover Jinan immediately and save the face of the empire and the imperial army.

After making up his mind, the general in the temple summoned Lieutenant General Matsuura Junrokuro, the head of the 106th Division, who had just entered Shandong Province and was about to go to Xuzhou to fight.

According to the plan of the general in the temple, the troops used by the Japanese army in the Xuzhou battle include the 10th, 14th, 7th, 9th, 102nd, 105th, and 106th divisions. Of the seven divisions, the first six are already in Xuzhou On the battlefield, it is not easy to mobilize. Once mobilized, the Japanese army's overall front will collapse immediately. Therefore, the task of recovering Jinan can only be handed over to the newly arrived 106th Division.

From a macro point of view, after the general of the temple put six divisions into the Xuzhou battlefield, the battle situation in Xuzhou was still a draw, and the two sides were tense, but after the seventh division, the 106th division, was invested, the battle situation completely fell However, the general in the temple had to use the 106th Division elsewhere in great pain to solve Jinan, which was in trouble.