Quartermasters can also fight the devils

After Colonel Tomonari Toshio, commander of the 13th Regiment of the 6th Division of the Japanese Army, and Colonel Kamura Ryuji, commander of the 14th Regiment, had finally taken in the wounded, they each organized a battalion of troops and launched an attack on the city of Changsha.

This time, the commander of the 13th Regiment, Colonel Tomonsari Toshi, and the commander of the 14th Regiment, Colonel Kamura Ryuji, both came to the front line in person to command this important attack operation. At the same time, the two were afraid that the Chinese army in Changsha would set up some traps, so they had to come and take charge in person to feel at ease.

In order to guard against the Chinese army in Changsha setting some traps on the high ground in front of the city, the commander of the 13th Regiment, Colonel Tomochikame Toshi, and the commander of the 14th Regiment, Colonel Kamura Ryuji, requested the attacking troops to disperse their formations, expand the attack area, and rush into Changsha from different street corners in order to avoid excessive losses to the attacking forces.

In this way, if the attacking forces of the 13th and 14th Regiments of the Japanese Army encountered any traps, their losses could be minimized. However, the New 22nd Army itself intended to drag the Japanese army into the city of Changsha and did not set any traps at all.

After the Japanese army was dispersed in this way, the offensive front became very long. After the troops entered the Changsha city, they immediately discovered a problem. That is, every street in the Changsha city had been built with fortifications by the Chinese army. In front of such dense fortifications, the problem of insufficient firepower of the scattered Japanese offensive forces was immediately exposed.

The two battalions of officers and soldiers from the 13th and 14th Regiments of the Japanese Army that entered the urban area of ​​Changsha, using squads or half squads as basic units, attacked the Chinese army's fortifications in the middle of the street with difficulty. From time to time, they were ambushed by Chinese soldiers who were lying in ambush in the houses on both sides of the street or on the roofs.

Less than an hour after the Japanese attacking forces rushed into Changsha City, the commander of the 13th Regiment, Colonel Tomonsari Toshio, and the commander of the 14th Regiment, Colonel Kamura Ryuji, received communications from their respective attacking forces. Their purpose was surprisingly the same: they needed reinforcements.

After receiving requests for reinforcements from the attacking forces, Colonel Tomonari Toshio, commander of the 13th Regiment of the Japanese Army, and Colonel Kamura Ryuji, commander of the 14th Regiment, each sent another squadron of troops into the city to fight. As long as the Chinese army did not set up any deadly traps, they would be fine.

Now the Chinese army has made it clear that they are planning to engage in street fighting in the city of Changsha. This is a very good sign for Colonel Tomonsari Toshio, commander of the 13th Regiment, and Colonel Kamura Ryuji, commander of the 14th Regiment. As long as the Chinese army fights openly, their troops will have the confidence to break through the Chinese army's defensive positions and completely occupy the city of Changsha.

After the Japanese reinforcements entered Changsha City, they immediately launched an attack on the defensive positions of the New 22nd Army on the main streets. After the Japanese squadron's offensive forces were concentrated, the defensive positions of the New 22nd Army on some streets felt tremendous pressure.

Therefore, the officers and soldiers in the New 22nd Army's defensive fortifications on some streets took the initiative to abandon their positions on the streets and lured the Japanese offensive forces deeper into Changsha City, so that they could better stick the Japanese troops inside Changsha City.

Just as the troops of the Japanese 6th Division were advancing with difficulty in the city of Changsha, the Chief of Staff of the Japanese 11th Army, Lieutenant General Isamu Kinoshita, sent a not-so-good telegram from the Japanese 11th Army Headquarters in Sanzhen to Lieutenant General Anami Korechika, the commander of the Japanese 11th Army who was personally commanding the operations in Yueyang. The telegram stated that the ammunition and supplies of the Japanese 11th Army's attacking forces were almost exhausted.

Since the original battle plan for this battle was to attack the main force of the Chinese government's Ninth War Zone, the target of the attack was to reach the north bank of the Miluo River, in order to tie down the Chinese government's troops and prevent them from affecting the actions of the Japanese 23rd Army attacking Hong Kong Island.

However, the temporary change of the battle objective by Lieutenant General Anami Korechika, commander of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army, changed the battle objective of the Japanese offensive force to capture the city of Changsha. This made the previously prepared ammunition and supplies completely insufficient. It would be fine if the offensive force could progress faster, but now the ammunition of the offensive forces on the front line is no longer supplied, and the supplies have been exhausted. In addition, the recent rain and snow have made the roads on the supply line extremely difficult to travel, making it difficult to transport ammunition and supplies to the combat troops at the front.

In the telegram, Lieutenant General Isamu Kinoshita, Chief of Staff of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army, directly proposed to stop the current combat mission of the 6th Division and the 3rd Division to attack Changsha. The entire army will begin to withdraw from the battlefield tomorrow and will be able to return to the north bank of the Miluo River the day after tomorrow morning. In that way, the troops can withdraw safely to the starting point.

However, Lieutenant General Anami Korechika, commander of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army, still hoped to occupy Changsha and then decide whether to retreat based on the situation. He had a deep obsession with occupying Changsha because the two previous commanders of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army had never been able to occupy Changsha. If he could command the troops of the 11th Army to occupy Changsha, it would be the best proof of his ability for Lieutenant General Anami Korechika, commander of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army.

However, Lieutenant General Isamu Kinoshita, Chief of Staff of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army, was a very responsible person. When he saw that Commander Lieutenant General Anami Korechika still wanted to continue attacking Changsha City, he kept sending telegrams stating the dangers involved and tried to persuade Commander Lieutenant General Anami Korechika to temporarily give up the idea of ​​occupying Changsha.

Finally, under the constant persuasion of Lieutenant General Isamu Kinoshita, Chief of Staff of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army, Lieutenant General Anami Korechika, Commander of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army, finally gave up his idea of ​​occupying the city of Changsha and decided to order the offensive forces of the 6th Division and the 3rd Division to begin retreating at night in accordance with the proposal of Lieutenant General Isamu Kinoshita, Chief of Staff.

At the same time, General Huang of the New 22nd Army also received a telegram from the highest level of the government. In the telegram, the highest level of the government stated: "For the past two days, the various units of the New 22nd Army have held their positions and fought bravely to annihilate the enemy. This is very commendable. The success or failure of this Changsha battle depends entirely on whether your unit can hold Changsha for a long time and annihilate the enemy. Your officers and soldiers must be determined to live and die with Changsha City. You will surely be able to destroy the powerful enemy and gain supreme glory. I hope you can encourage your subordinates to fight hard and strive for the final victory, and live up to the expectations of me and the people of the country."

Commander General Xue of the Ninth War Zone is now commanding the Chinese troops on the outside, approaching Changsha from the east, south and north, and the encirclement of the Japanese troops outside Changsha is already taking shape.