The War of Resistance Against Japan: Special Operations Battalion Traverses Shanghai and Slaughters

Early in the morning, after breakfast, Commander Li, along with his deputy commander, staff officers, and guards, called Liu Wei and Gao Hong and sped towards Taierzhuang.

Because Commander Sun of the Second Army Group, Commander Tang of the 20th Army Corps, Commander Sun of the 22nd Army Group, and Commander Zhang of the 59th Army were all fighting in other places.

Commander Li could only call over Deputy Chief of the General Staff Bai Chongxi to discuss the matter.

After listening to Commander Li's explanation, Bai Chongxi immediately expressed his doubts.

"Commander Li, Long Fei's battle plan is too risky. If it fails, it will be tantamount to handing Taierzhuang over to the Japanese devils."

When Commander Li saw that Bai Chongxi, who was known as the Little Zhuge Liang, also disagreed, he became even more apprehensive.

"Jiansheng, actually I share your doubts."

"You should know that the Japanese have two elite divisions. Even though I have more than 200,000 troops under my command, I dare not say that I will annihilate the Japanese completely."

"But do you know what? Long Fei sent me a telegram saying that he led the Longyan Legion and annihilated the Sakamoto Detachment of the Fifth Division in the Xiangcheng area."

"They also beheaded the commander of the Setani Detachment, Setani Kei, and the Setani Detachment is being annihilated."

"What? The Dragon Flame Legion is that powerful? This..."

At this moment, Bai Chongxi's face was filled with nothing but shock.

Commander Li then said solemnly, "Jiansheng, I have arranged to meet with Long Fei in Taierzhuang tomorrow. You will come with me then. We will discuss the final decision after we have talked."

Bai Chongxi immediately nodded and said, "Okay, I also want to meet this Long Fei and see if he has three heads and six arms."

Xuzhou is less than 100 kilometers from Taierzhuang, so before 10 a.m., Commander Li and his party arrived at the forward command post in Taierzhuang.

Before setting off, Liu Wei sent a telegram to Long Fei using Commander Li's radio.

Therefore, after estimating the time, Long Fei led Xie Qiang and a platoon of soldiers into Taierzhuang.

Upon arriving at the command post, Commander Li and Bai Chongxi personally came out to greet them.

Upon seeing the two, Long Fei smiled and saluted, saying, "Greetings, Commander Li. I am Long Fei, Commander of the Longyan Legion. I have come to meet you."

Commander Li and Bai Chongxi looked Long Fei up and down.

Commander Li nodded and returned the salute.

"Commander of the Dragon Legion, you are so dashing and have such an extraordinary presence. Please come in."

"it is good……"

Long Fei didn't stand on ceremony and walked in. When he saw Liu Wei and Gao Hong, he nodded slightly.

After they were both seated, Bai Chongxi asked impatiently.

"Commander Long, Commander Li told me about your battle plan. I would like to ask, what makes you so confident that you can annihilate two Japanese divisions in the Taierzhuang area?"

Long Fei did not answer directly, but instead asked a question in return.

"Commander Bai, wasn't the strategy you and Commander Li devised to lure those two Japanese divisions to the Taierzhuang area for encirclement and annihilation?"

"This……"

Bai Chongxi was immediately speechless, because Long Fei was right; that was indeed their idea.

However, their ambitions were not as great as Long Fei's. They believed that the best outcome would be to inflict heavy losses on the Japanese, even if it was just an encirclement and annihilation.

Commander Li looked at Long Fei without saying anything. He knew that Long Fei had only just begun; the important part was what followed.

Long Fei paused for a moment, then continued.

"My strategic vision actually coincides with that of the two officers."

"But the difference is that you used more than 200,000 poorly equipped Nationalist troops to block and lure the Japanese at every turn, and fight them to the death."

"And I plan to use powerful and numerous artillery pieces to inflict heavy casualties on the Japanese first, and then annihilate the Japanese Fifth and Tenth Divisions."

"By the way, before dark last night, my troops had already annihilated the Setani Detachment of the Japanese 10th Division in the Liangxiadian area."

"From Seya Kei down, 15,000 Japanese soldiers were all wiped out without exception, including the 10th Regiment of the Japanese army, which was known as the Oni-Akashiba Devil Unit."

"The body of Yaezo Akashiba, commander of the 10th Regiment, is in the hands of your 22nd Army."

"In addition, last night my troops also bombed the Jinpu Railway and launched a night attack on Dawenkou Airport, annihilating a squadron of Japanese soldiers guarding the airport and destroying 36 enemy aircraft. The airport was also severely damaged and will be unusable in the short term."

"What? Is this true?"

When Commander Li and Bai Chongxi heard the good news, they were extremely excited, but it felt like a dream and very unreal.

After the two of them had processed the news, Long Fei started telling them more bad news.

"Currently, the Japanese 5th and 10th Divisions have less than half their strength. They are still aware of their own limitations, so they have suspended their offensive and urgently called for reinforcements."

"The Japanese have also made a decision to urgently dispatch the Third and Thirteenth Independent Mixed Brigades, which have been reorganized in Hebei, to provide reinforcements. They will arrive within two days."

"what……"

The two looked at each other after hearing this, thinking to themselves, "This Long Fei really has a knack for making shocking statements, dropping bombshell after bombshell."

Commander Li and Bai Chongxi, who were initially in high spirits, became anxious again because of this news.

"Commander Long, now that the Japanese have added two independent mixed brigades to the battle, do you still think your battle plan is feasible?"

Bai Chongxi asked the question that Commander Li most wanted to ask.

Long Fei revealed a confident smile: "Commander Bai, of course. Even if the Japanese send two more independent mixed brigades as reinforcements, I will swallow them whole, leaving not even a bone fragment."

Long Fei's imposing answer shocked and moved Commander Li and Bai Chongxi.

However, Commander Li still expressed his biggest concern.

"Commander Long, I think the biggest risk of your battle plan is that if it fails, Taierzhuang will fall into the hands of the Japanese, and the northern gateway to Xuzhou will be wide open and in grave danger."

"Although my initial plan was to encircle and annihilate the Japanese in the Taierzhuang area, that was on the premise of blocking the Japanese at all levels and greatly depleting their manpower."

"You're planning to let the Japanese in directly, which is too risky. Perhaps we can discuss and devise a more appropriate plan."

Long Fei disagreed and immediately shook his head in denial.

"Commander Li, everything involves risks, and the risks of war are naturally even greater."

"Your plan is indeed more secure and reliable, but it requires the lives of tens of thousands of soldiers to achieve it."

"Instead of doing that, let me, Long Fei, take the risk alone."

Commander Li and Bai Chongxi clearly didn't understand Long Fei's last sentence.

"Commander Dragon Legion, what do you mean by that...?"

"What I mean is, as long as you two officers agree to my battle plan."

"If the situation you are worried about comes to pass and Taierzhuang is captured by the Japanese, I, Long Fei, will take full responsibility."

Although Bai Chongxi admired Long Fei's sense of responsibility, he couldn't help but tease him.

"Commander Long, this battle concerns the safety of Xuzhou, and will also affect the safety of Wuhan and Changsha. The responsibility is too great, and I'm afraid you can't bear it alone."

Long Fei suddenly stood up and said in a loud voice.

"My lords, the victory in the Battle of Taierzhuang is a blessing for all our Chinese compatriots and a great achievement for all the soldiers of the Fifth War Zone."

"If I fail, it will be my fault alone, and I will commit suicide to atone for my sins!"

Long Fei's words, which stood tall and firm, not only shocked Commander Li and Bai Chongxi, but also left Liu Wei, Gao Hong, Xie Qiang and others dumbfounded.

Is it necessary to gamble so high? Is it necessary to risk one's life?