Bright Sword: Japs, times have changed

With the great victory in the battle in northwestern Shanxi, anti-Japanese sentiment rose across the country, and the Eighth Route Army benefited the most.

Weapons, ammunition, food supplies, manpower and other aspects have been replenished in large quantities.

In the past, the headquarters would issue an order at this time, requiring the troops in the northwest Shanxi region to remain quiet for a period of time.

Beware of the large-scale counter-mopping-up operations by the Japanese.

But this time, not only the headquarters, but also the division and brigade headquarters did not issue any instructions, let alone any combat orders.

It is obvious that he is letting the troops below do the work in a bold and decisive manner.

Lin Qiang was not the kind of person who would fuss around. After the four of them discussed it, they decided that the independent battalion would advance into Taiyuan from the front.

The Independent Regiment, the New First Regiment, and the New Second Regiment headed straight for Taiyuan from the other three directions.

Any enemy artillery towers, strongholds, or obstacles encountered along the way will be reduced to ashes.

Lin Qiang led the independent battalion and marched quickly towards Taiyuan.

The soldiers were in high spirits and marched quickly all the way.

On the way, they encountered a sturdy Japanese artillery tower with fierce firepower.

Lin Qiang calmly commanded: "Monk, send out scouts first to find out the enemy's firepower distribution."

"Duan Peng, lead the special forces team over there."

"Yes!"

Lin Qiang said to several company commanders: "The troops must continue to advance according to the original planned route. Don't delay the original combat time!"

"Yes!"

After figuring out the Japanese's firepower configuration, Lin Qiang gave orders in a cold voice.

Let the sniper take out the enemy's key outposts.

The special forces were like a sharp blade, piercing straight into the heart of the Japanese.

The battle lasted only ten minutes and the main force was not affected at all.

After solving this problem, the special forces immediately caught up with the main force and continued to run to the front to act as eyes.

At the same time, the Independent Regiment, the New 1st Regiment and the New 2nd Regiment also made smooth progress and continued to eliminate surrounding strongholds.

However, the Japanese army also noticed the Eighth Route Army's big moves and urgently mobilized a large number of reinforcements to Taiyuan.

The intelligence personnel quickly passed the news back to the various troops.

Lin Qiang decided to speed up and capture Taiyuan before the Japanese reinforcements arrived.

Li Yunlong, Ding Wei and Kong Jie had the same idea and ordered the march to be accelerated.

When encountering artillery towers and strongholds along the way, they would go around them if possible, and only stop and run over them when there was no way to avoid them.

However, the closer they got to Taiyuan, the more obstacles they encountered, and the more ferocious the Japanese firepower became.

The team had to stop temporarily to rest. The long forced march was not a problem for the lightly equipped soldiers.

But the soldiers in the supply platoon were all exhausted.

The team rested on the spot, ate and drank water.

Lin Qiang ate the dry food he brought with him while thinking about his next plan.

If we fight battle after battle, it will not be a problem for the independent battalion.

But the problem is that by doing so, the scheduled attack time will be missed.

The independent battalion's frontal attack is particularly important and can even directly affect the course of the battle.

Lin Qiang called Duan Peng and said to him, "The special forces' mission has changed. The new mission is to get ahead of the main force and solve all the problems encountered along the way."

"any questions?"

Duan Peng nodded decisively and confidently: "No problem!"

Lin Qiang sighed, "In war, there will always be sacrifices. I don't want to see my brothers fall in front of me. That's why when we were fighting the 4th Brigade, I didn't let them pursue the victory."

"Duan Peng, the brothers of the special forces team are now in your care. You and all the team members must not be sacrificed!"

Duan Peng saluted with a serious expression, saying, "Don't worry, Captain. We will definitely complete the mission!"

After saying that, he led the special forces team and rushed forward like an arrow.

The special forces took advantage of the terrain and cleverly avoided some Japanese patrols, targeting those heavy firepower points that blocked the advance of the main force.

They adopted a surprise attack tactic, first using smoke bombs to disrupt the enemy's vision, and then quickly engaging in close combat.

Duan Peng was extremely brave, killing several Japanese invaders with his double guns.

Thanks to the efforts of the special forces, the road ahead gradually became clear.

On Lin Qiang's side, after seeing the signal from the special forces, he immediately reorganized the team and set off again.

At this time, the Japanese reinforcements were getting closer and closer to Taiyuan, and the atmosphere became increasingly tense.

With the special forces as the vanguard, the independent battalion's marching route became very smooth.

Small groups of enemies would be encountered from time to time, but facing the independent battalions that attacked like a flood, these enemies would be killed with just a light blow.

……

Taiyuan.

headquarters.

Yoshio Shinozuka slumped in his chair, his face pale.

In situations like this, he would usually smash things to vent his emotions.

But this time he didn't.

Because he no longer had any extra energy to waste.

The battle in the entire Shanxi Province was at a disadvantage, and Taiyuan was in danger.

Coupled with the previous desperate gamble, there are not many troops left to defend the city.

Even if all the troops on the periphery were withdrawn, the defenders would only have the strength of a brigade.

However, facing the siege of the city by four main forces of the Eighth Route Army in northwestern Shanxi, Yoshio Shinozuka was somewhat worried.

As early as when he learned that the Eighth Route Army was encircling Taiyuan, Yoshio Shinozuka had already made one phone call after another.

Only now can I breathe a sigh of relief.

What made him angry was that the troops in other places were tied down by the various units of the Eighth Route Army and were unable to carry out any reinforcement operations.

Bombers can bomb long-range targets, but this time the battlefield is in Taiyuan, and Yoshio Shinozuka is not stupid enough to die with Lin Qiang and the others.

The only hope of survival was to evacuate Taiyuan on a plane that had been prepared long ago.

You can even fly all the way back to the island.

But Shinozuka Yoshio didn't want to. He would rather die in battle than run away like a stray dog.

After calming down, Shinozuka Yoshio put on his glasses and said, "Inform the troops to deploy their defenses as planned. The logistics department must ensure ammunition is fully supplied."

"Put the tanks and heavy artillery on the second line of defense. Hold the city gates for at least ten days, no matter how hard you try!"

"Hi Yi!"

……

Independent camp.

The artillery was hung far behind the main force, not only for safety but also because of weight issues.

The main force still took the main road, which greatly reduced the trouble of transporting artillery.

The horses and mules were pulling 105 caliber howitzers.

The trucks seized from Jiefang County were divided equally between Lin Qiang and the three regiment commanders, with each receiving five trucks.

The truck is used to tow a 150mm caliber howitzer, and the carriage is loaded with a lot of logistical supplies.

The tank team was at the end, the final stage, to prevent any sneak attacks from the Japanese from behind.

Of course, it also serves to protect the dining car.

Eating is a very important matter. Lin Qiang absolutely cannot let the soldiers fight on an empty stomach.

The main road intersection was in better condition, so the kitchen staff had already prepared a lot of steamed buns on the dining car while they were on their way.

Everything is ready.