Quartermasters can also fight the devils

Under the pincer attack from the north and south by the various offensive forces of the Japanese 11th Army, all the troops of the Chinese government's 10th Army retreated westward to Nuanshui Street and the areas west of Liujiachang and Chayuan Temple on the 15th.

The 10th Army of the Chinese government retreated to Nuanshui Street, Liujiachang and the area west of Chayuan Temple. Although it still had five divisions and one regiment, after several days of fierce fighting with the 11th Army of the Japanese Army, the actual strength left in the 10th Army was only one-third of the established strength, and the combat effectiveness of each unit was still extremely fragile.

After leading his troops to occupy Gong'an, Lieutenant General Yamamoto San'ao, commander of the Japanese 3rd Division, immediately ordered the troops of the 3rd Division and its attached troops to attack Songzi while wiping out the remnants of the Chinese army on the west bank of the Songzi River in accordance with the battle plan formulated by Lieutenant General Yokoyama Isamu, commander of the Japanese 11th Army.

The offensive units of the Japanese 11th Army began to launch attacks one after another according to the combat orders. Only two days later, the troops of the Japanese 3rd Division completed the encirclement of Songzi City. At dawn on the third day, the troops of the 3rd Division occupied Songzi without encountering large forces of the Chinese army.

At this point, the 10th Army of the Chinese government was in danger of being attacked from the north and south by the offensive forces of the th Army of the Japanese Army. The situation was extremely dangerous and urgent. The Sixth War Zone Command of the Chinese government quickly ordered the th Army to retreat westward as soon as possible to avoid being surrounded and destroyed by the offensive forces of the th Army of the Japanese Army.

After the attacking force of the Japanese 11th Army severely damaged the 10th Army of the Chinese government and completed the combat mission of the second phase of the Battle of Western Hubei, the commander of the Japanese 11th Army, Lieutenant General Isamu Yokoyama, immediately ordered the troops to move north, preparing to launch a pincer attack from the north and south again, capturing, encircling and annihilating the main force of the Jiang Defense Army of the Chinese government's Sixth War Zone between Shipai and Qingjiang.

The third phase of the Hubei-West Campaign, formulated by Lieutenant General Isamu Yokoyama, commander of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army, was scheduled to begin on May 21. Lieutenant General Isamu Yokoyama, commander of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army, planned to defeat the main forces of the 10th Army and the Jiang Defense Army of the Chinese Government's Sixth War Zone that had withdrawn to the Changyang area across the Yichang River, and then open up the Yangtze River shipping waterway from Yichang to the downstream, so that the 53 motor ships seized by the Japanese Army's 11th Army in Yichang can smoothly enter the Yangtze River to carry out transportation tasks.

After completing the second phase of the combat mission, Lieutenant General Isamu Yokoyama, commander of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army, issued combat orders to all participating troops to prepare to enter the third phase of the Battle of Western Hubei.

Lieutenant General Isamu Yokoyama, commander of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army, ordered the 3rd Division of the Japanese Army to begin assembling near Chayuan Temple, ordered the 13th Division of the Japanese Army to assemble near Quanfu Chong and Yuyangguan, ordered the Nogou Detachment to assemble in the area on the south bank of the Zhijiang River, and ordered the 17th Independent Mixed Brigade of the Japanese Army to set out from near Gong'an to attack and occupy the high ground southwest of Dayan, pretending to attack Changde, and at the same time be responsible for providing rear cover when the Japanese 11th Army troops fought in the area west of Yichang.

After Lieutenant General Isamu Yokoyama, commander of the Japanese 11th Army, issued the combat order for the third phase of the Hubei-West Campaign, the Japanese 3rd Division arrived at Chayuan Temple and its northwest area on the third day to assemble. Other units of the Japanese 11th Army also assembled at the designated location on time.

The 39th Division of the Japanese Army, which was specially prepared by Lieutenant General Isamu Yokoyama, commander of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army for the third phase of the Battle of Western Hubei, also assembled near Yunchi in the southeast of Yichang. At the same time, the Nochi Detachment also assembled in Yichang. This time, after the combat units of the various divisions of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army participating in the third phase of the Battle of Western Hubei were assembled, they quickly began various preparations for the battle.

When the various offensive forces of the Japanese 11th Army participating in the third phase of the Battle of Western Hubei were ready, the commander of the Japanese 11th Army, Lieutenant General Isamu Yokoyama, immediately ordered the Japanese 39th Division to launch an attack from the banks of the Yangtze River, first annihilating the Chinese troops around Changyang.

Then, Lieutenant General Isamu Yokoyama, commander of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army, ordered the Nojima Detachment to attack the area west of Yichang City and capture and annihilate the Chinese defenders in the area.

At the same time, Lieutenant General Isamu Yokoyama, commander of the 11th Army of the Japanese Army, ordered that the 3rd Division of the Japanese Army launch an attack in the early morning of May 21st. After the offensive force of the 3rd Division of the Japanese Army entered the vicinity of Changyang area, the main force of the division turned to attack northward, and another part of the troops were sent to the area west of Yichang City to support the Nogou Detachment in combat.

The 13th Division was ordered to attack into the Quanfu Chong and Yuyangguan areas, and then continue to attack to the vicinity of Duzhenwan. The 13th Division then turned to attack northward. The Yegou Detachment launched an attack in the early morning of May 22, entered the area west of Yichang, and eliminated the Chinese army west of Yichang.

Based on the actions of the various units of the Japanese 11th Army, Commander Sun, acting commander of the Sixth War Zone of the Chinese government, judged that the offensive forces of the Japanese 11th Army would launch an attack on the defense line of the Chinese government's Jiang Defense Army, so he quickly made adjustments and deployments to the various units.

Commander Sun, acting commander of the Sixth War Zone of the Chinese government, ordered the Tenth Army not to retreat any further and the entire army to carry out a protracted war on the spot, focusing the combat on the left wing of the defense line to ensure the safety of the Niejiahe, Renheping and Ziliangping lines.

The Chinese government ordered the Jiang Defense Army to ensure the safety of the Shipai Fortress, and the Jiang Defense Army's right wing defense line to contact the Tenth Army Group and cooperate in combat. At the same time, the 67th Division, which was temporarily transferred from the Jiang Defense Army's 86th Army to the command of the Tenth Army Group, was ordered to return the Jiang Defense Army's 86th Army to its organization.

A day later, Commander Chen of the Sixth War Zone of the Chinese government also urgently returned to the Sixth War Zone Headquarters from the mountain city and began to command the operations of all troops in the Sixth War Zone.

The first thing Commander Chen did when he returned to the Sixth War Zone Headquarters was to send a telegram to the highest levels of the government and the Military Commission, requesting that his Sixth War Zone be reinforced with combat-capable troops so that he could resolve the current emergency in western Hubei.

After Commander Chen spoke, the highest level of the government and the Military Commission acted very quickly. On the same day, they ordered the Chinese government's 74th Army and the New 22nd Army to be transferred from the Ninth War Zone to the Sixth War Zone, and to rush to Changde for emergency assistance. At this time, the troops of the 74th Army and the New 22nd Army were all resting in Changsha and Ningxiang, which was not far from Changde, so it was quite convenient to rush to the Changde battlefield.

Just as the Chinese government's Sixth War Zone was urgently mobilizing troops, the offensive forces of the Japanese 11th Army's 13th Division and the Japanese Independent Mixed 17th Brigade also began their attacks one after another.