Bright Sword: Construction starts from southeastern Shanxi

However, the intensity of the Wuhan battle exceeded the expectations of both China and Japan over time. In particular, the disastrous defeats of the 27th and 106th Divisions prompted both sides to engage in larger and more intense fighting.

The 108th Division had to withdraw its original troops and continue to move south.

As a result, most of the 108th Division’s members are newly recruited soldiers, many of whom are still undergoing military training.

During the autumn mopping-up operation in North China, Taniguchi Motojiro took into consideration that the combat effectiveness of the troops below him was not yet able to participate in the mopping-up operation, so after discussing with Commander Sugiyama Moto, he only served as a garrison force on the Shotai Line.

As an old Japanese soldier who fought in Northeast China and then returned to serve as the president of a military academy, Taniguchi Motojiro carefully reviewed the combat situation of the previous First Army and the Eighth Route Army in southeastern Shanxi after arriving in North China to form the 108th Division.

Soon, Taniguchi Motojiro came to the conclusion that before the 108th Division could form combat effectiveness, the Eighth Route Army in the southeastern Shanxi region must adopt a defensive stance.

In particular, Taniguchi Motojiro discovered from the battle report of the last nine-way sweep in southeastern Shanxi that one of the two regiments under the 14th Division and the 16th Division was crippled and the other was completely wiped out when fighting against the Eighth Route Army.

You have to know that this is the elite force of the Locust Army. On the front battlefield, a regiment can suppress an entire division.

Although the locust army's air superiority and heavy firepower advantages were not brought into play in the last battle, the Eighth Route Army in the southeastern Shanxi region took advantage of the terrain and actually wiped out the two regiments of the locust army.

This was incredible to Taniguchi Motojiro, and he showed deep fear of the Eighth Route Army in southeastern Shanxi.

Taniguchi Motojiro was well aware that the troops under his command could not rely on conventional means to fight the Eighth Route Army in southeastern Shanxi.

Taniguchi Motojiro's original idea was to wait until the 108th Division became combat-ready, then take out the secret weapons prepared from the Northeast and march south to attack this Eighth Route Army.

However, it was unexpected that Commander Sugiyama Gen suddenly launched a large-scale sweep of the Eighth Route Army in Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei.

The secret weapons that he had prepared were still in the Northeast and had not been transported there, so he could not engage in a head-on confrontation with the Eighth Route Army at this moment.

That's why Taniguchi Motojiro gave such instructions to Takagi Yoshikazu.

As a newly promoted brigade commander in the rear, Gao Shujiayi naturally has a clear understanding of the combat effectiveness of the troops under his command.

Moreover, as the commander of a regiment, he did not consider as many things as the commander of a division.

But he still had a rough idea of ​​the situation of the soldiers below.

Especially the newly recruited soldiers, when they learned that their troops were reorganized after being completely wiped out by the Chinese army, and that the troops that annihilated the locust army were right next to them, these people who had not held guns for many years suddenly became puzzled. This was obviously different from the domestic propaganda.

But Gao Shujiayi had no choice but to scold them not to be frightened by the army in the south.

Afterwards, Gao Shujiayi assembled his troops and set off for Pingding.

At the same time, Taniguchi Motojiro was also preparing to report the news to the temporary commander of the First Army in Taiyuan, Okabe Naosaburo.

But when Taniguchi Motojiro was about to report, news came from the 132nd Regiment that a squadron stationed in Ceshi was attacked by the Eighth Route Army and all the soldiers were killed.

At the same time, the Ceshi Station was also occupied by the Eighth Route Army. At this time, the commander of the 132nd Regiment, Saito Yoshio, sent a battalion to retake Ceshi, but was blocked by other troops of the Eighth Route Army on the way.

The two sides are now fighting fiercely, but the situation is beginning to turn unfavorable for the 132nd Regiment. The battalion sent out has suffered heavy casualties. Saito Yoshio has no choice but to ask for tactical guidance.

After receiving the report from the commander of the 132nd Regiment, Saito Yoshio, Taniguchi Motojiro's expression immediately became serious.