Bright Sword: Construction starts from southeastern Shanxi

The 28th Brigade of the 14th Division set out from Wuan. Its two regiments, like the previous regiments, started a firefight with the Eighth Route Army.

At the same time, the 4th Independent Mixed Brigade, which was heading south from Pingding County, was also lured by the Eighth Route Army to deviate from the established mopping-up route, and fought a stalemate with the Eighth Route Army in the Zhanshang area.

As Naosaburo Okabe watched the sudden changes in the battlefield situation, he suddenly discovered a problem.

According to intelligence, the 389th Brigade only has three main force regiments. Even if it has been expanded over the past six months, its total strength will not exceed 10 regiments.

According to the intelligence department, after losing a large number of personnel and sneaking into the base of the 389th Brigade, it was discovered that although there were a large number of militia guerrillas in the defense area of ​​the 389th Brigade, the main force only found seven regiments. Okabe Naosaburo still estimated that the 389th Brigade would draw some militia for combat, and added three regiments according to the standards of the Chinese National Army.

However, in the current situation, the 389th Brigade has more than 10 regiments. If you include the two regiments that ambushed the 16th Division, there are probably more than 15 regiments.

However, Okabe Naosaburo had no idea that in this operation, the 389th Brigade dispatched 14 main combat regiments, and 14 local regiments were responsible for logistical coordination.

At the same time, after more than half a year of development, many of these 14 local groups have begun to develop into main groups.

Without time to think, Okabe Naosaburo immediately sent a telegram to the troops on the front line, ordering the three troops of the 20th Division to immediately encircle the first group, assemble in the Mafang area and march towards Xiyang, and the 2nd Regiment of the 16th Division in the Wuxiang direction to immediately withdraw and move closer to the 59th Regiment.

At the same time, the 4th Independent Mixed Brigade of Pingding also moved towards Xiyang to support the 9th Regiment of the 16th Division. After the two regiments of the 14th Division in Changzhi gathered, they immediately headed towards the 28th Brigade in Shexian to meet up, cross the Taihang Mountains and head straight for Beixiaozhuang.

At 12:45 noon, when Jisaburo Okabe was preparing to convey orders to the front-line troops, he received shocking news that Yangquan and Niangzi Pass were under attack.

Time goes back to 12 o'clock, a new group.

After the commander of the New 1st Regiment, Li Yunlong, received the order from Zeng Jiwen to attack along the Zhengtai Line, the New 1st Regiment immediately began to act according to the previously formulated combat plan.

The area from Yangquan to Jingxing on the Zhengtai Line had previously been defended by the Japanese Army's 4th Independent Mixed Brigade.

After receiving the news from the First Army Headquarters that the troops were gathering and on standby, the commander of the 4th Independent Mixed Brigade, Kiyomi Shimizu, began to gradually withdraw his troops, leaving behind a small team and some puppet troops at various strongholds along the way.

At this time, there was only a squadron of Japanese troops and a company commander of puppet troops in Niangzi Pass, while in Yangquan, there was a security battalion.

During the capture of the Zhengtai Line, when Li Yunlong's New 1st Regiment attacked the Zhengtai Line, Zeng Jiwen sent the First Battalion of the Special Operations Brigade to accompany Li Yunlong's New 1st Regiment in order to prevent the New Regiment from suffering too many casualties due to the attack.

Before receiving Zeng Jiwen's order, Li Yunlong had been active in the Niangzi Pass area of ​​Jingxing and was familiar with the nearby terrain.

In order to move faster and reduce casualties, Li Yunlong brought all the main forces of the five battalions with him this time.

At the same time, Li Yunlong also mobilized militia guerrillas in Pingshan, Lingshou and Jingxing areas to move with the main force.

Since there were many strongholds along the Zhengtai Line, Li Yunlong could not take care of every stronghold. So he ordered the first battalion commander Wang Dahua to lead the first battalion and a part of the militia guerrillas to blast the strongholds along the way with the homemade flying thunder cannon, which was later called the conscienceless cannon by the soldiers below.

After all, Wang Dahua had been chased all over the mountains by the Japanese army along this route before, so he was very familiar with it.