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

Two hours later, the 10th Division and the 3rd Independent Mixed Brigade arrived at the outskirts of Tengxian City along the Jinpu Railway.

At this time, the 122nd Division of the 22nd Army Group of the Sichuan Army was stationed in Teng County.

Originally, Division Commander Wang Mingzhang had already made the decision to live and die with Teng County.

Unexpectedly, he received a call from Commander Li, who ordered him to hold off the enemy for only two to three hours and then abandon Teng County and retreat to Lincheng.

When Wang Mingzhang received the order, he was completely dumbfounded. He couldn't understand why the Fifth War Zone would make such a decision.

After racking his brains, Wang Mingzhang sent a telegram to Commander Sun.

Commander Sun was also puzzled. Xu Peng had said that he would soon receive the order to retreat, and sure enough, his words came true.

The reason Commander Li did not explain the true situation to his subordinates was because he was afraid of the information leaking out.

Once the Japanese realized that this was a Nationalist army tactic to lure them in, they immediately changed their tactics or deployment.

Then Long Fei's plan to annihilate the Japanese in the Taierzhuang area would fail.

Commander Sun's reply consisted of only four words: "Execute the order."

At this time, Commander Sun and the 22nd Army Group had already retreated to Lincheng ahead of schedule.

As ordered by Commander Li, we were to wait here for the 122nd Division to arrive, then hold off the Japanese for a while before the entire army withdrew to Hanzhuang.

When the two Japanese armies meet in Zaozhuang and march on Taierzhuang via Yixian, they will quickly surround the Japanese forces under the walls of Taierzhuang from west to east.

On the other side, Commander Li ordered the 59th Army and the 3rd Corps to hold Xiangcheng for twelve hours before retreating to Lanling.

Commander Zhang of the 59th Army and Commander Pang of the 3rd Army Corps had a very unpleasant past, which led to a feud between them.

However, faced with the greater cause of the nation and its people, the two put aside their past grievances and joined hands to fight the enemy, managing to hold off the attack of the Fifth Division.

As for Commander Tang's 20th Army Corps, Commander Li, seeing that he was focused on preserving his strength, passively avoided battle.

A telegram was sent to the Nationalist government leadership, firmly stating that if the individual continued to disobey orders and defy military commands, he would be executed in the name of the Fifth War Zone Command.

Left with no other option, the Nationalist government leaders sent a telegram to Commander Tang, ordering him to fully assist the Fifth War Zone in its operations, or face court-martial if he dared to disobey.

After receiving the telegram from the Nationalist government leadership, Commander Tang was clearly frightened and immediately followed Commander Li's orders to fight back against Ozaki Yoshiharu's Independent Mixed 13th Brigade's southward advance along the Zaozhuang line.

Fortunately, Commander Li only ordered Commander Tang to hold out for half a day before the entire army withdrew towards Lanling.

This was entirely within the capabilities of the 20th Army Corps to accomplish the mission.

Commander Li had also made the worst-case scenario plan, which was to order Commander Sun's Second Army Group to withdraw to Taierzhuang.

If Long Fei's plan fails, then the Second Army Group should hold Taierzhuang, and other troops should be deployed to flank the Japanese.

Despite this arrangement, Commander Li was unsure whether they could ultimately hold Taierzhuang.

However, this was the most practical and feasible remedial measure that Commander Li and Bai Chongxi discussed and agreed upon at the moment.

Commander Li and Bai Chongxi were anxiously watching the development of the war at the Fifth War Zone Command Headquarters in Xuzhou.

Unexpectedly, at this moment, Long Fei sent a telegram.

In his telegram, Long Fei invited Commander Li and Bai Chongxi to Taierzhuang to witness the battle firsthand, saying that he would let them see the power of the new weapons.

Going to Taierzhuang at this time would be tantamount to sending sheep into the tiger's den if the battle went poorly.

Since Long Fei had extended an invitation, it would seem cowardly not to go.

Furthermore, the commander-in-chief's presence on the front lines can boost the morale of the soldiers.

Therefore, Commander Li and Bai Chongxi discussed it and decided that the risk was worth taking.

Moreover, the two officers were very curious about Long Fei's so-called new weapon and wanted to see it for themselves.

The Japanese 10th Division, along with the independent combined 3rd and 13th Brigades, finally captured Zaozhuang after suffering over a thousand casualties.

Meanwhile, the Fifth Division also successfully captured Xiangcheng.

Finally, after discussion, the two Japanese division commanders and two brigade commanders decided to have the independent mixed 13th Brigade join forces with the 5th Division and set off from Xiangcheng straight for Taierzhuang.

The 10th Division and the 3rd Independent Mixed Brigade set off from Zaozhuang, first capturing Yixian, and then advancing towards Taierzhuang.

After the two armies arrive at Taierzhuang, we will take this northern gateway to Xuzhou in one fell swoop.

When Commander Li and Bai Chongxi arrived at Taierzhuang and met with Long Fei.

Long Fei led the two officers directly to the north wall of Taierzhuang.

"Commander Dragon, are these cylinders the new weapon you're talking about?"

Commander Li touched the infrasound directional weapon, looked at its peculiar shape, and couldn't help but ask.

Long Fei could only make up a story: "Commander Li, that's right, this is a new type of weapon that our Dragon Flame Legion purchased from abroad."

"This weapon is incredibly powerful; it can kill without leaving a trace. You'll see then that I'm not exaggerating."

Bai Chongxi asked in an extremely skeptical tone.

"Commander Long, didn't you say you were going to use your artillery to wipe out the Japanese? How come it's turned into this kind of weapon now? This thing has a large caliber, but it's so short, can it even fire shells?"

It's understandable that Bai Chongxi would ask this question, since who could possibly recognize such a high-tech weapon that only appeared decades later?

Long Fei smiled faintly: "Commander Bai, as I just said, this weapon can kill people invisibly, so there is no need to fire shells."

Long Fei didn't elaborate further, which made Commander Li and Bai Chongxi feel that he was keeping them in suspense.

At this moment, Long Fei pointed into the distance and said confidently.

"According to our plan, the Japanese will be at the city gates tomorrow morning. I will make sure their corpses litter the ground. Please wait and see, officers."

Bai Chongxi replied with a skeptical attitude.

"Alright, let's hope that Commander Long keeps his word and doesn't let us down."

"Please rest assured, officers. I have risked my life and fortune, so I will not let you down, but will only make the Japanese despair."

Seeing that Long Fei was full of confidence, Commander Li didn't say anything more.

Afterwards, everyone returned to the forward command post in Taierzhuang.

At this time, various units sent telegrams saying that they had followed orders and begun to outflank the Japanese from the east and west.

Xu Peng had called Long Fei long ago, and he had already led his troops to quietly circle around behind the Japanese.

They are now secretly following the Japanese invaders.

After having dinner with Long Fei, the three of them went to the battle map.

The battle map has been re-marked according to the latest enemy and friendly situation.

Looking at the map, Commander Li couldn't help but say, "Commander Long, the Japanese are now being led by the nose by us step by step. With more than 50,000 Japanese soldiers gathered together, their strength should not be underestimated."

"If we lose this battle, Xuzhou will surely fall, and Wuhan and Changsha will also be in danger."

Long Fei knew that although Commander Li had paid a heavy price to defeat the attacks of the Fifth and Tenth Divisions and win the Battle of Taierzhuang,

But the Japanese quickly amassed a large force and launched a counterattack. Taierzhuang eventually fell, and the Battle of Xuzhou ended in defeat for the National Revolutionary Army.

This led to General Xue's four battles of Changsha and the birth of the Heavenly Furnace Strategy.

"Don't worry, even if the Japanese occupy Xuzhou and Wuhan, General Xue of the National Army, despite his defeat at the Four Crossings of the Chishui River, will still stop the Japanese at Changsha."

Long Fei's words came out of nowhere, leaving Commander Li and Bai Chongxi somewhat confused.

That night, Commander Li and Bai Chongxi were filled with trepidation and anticipation, and barely slept a wink.