Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

But the troops of the first division rushed into the county town in one go.

Not only did he run fast, he even managed to trick the Japanese army. There was a Japanese logistics squadron in the county, one responsible for monitoring the North China Security Army and the other for guarding the Japanese logistics supplies. Unfortunately, before the Japanese army could react, the Imperial Army lost the city gate and then the county seat of Zhuo County.

This kind of combat effectiveness left the Japanese army stunned.

The Imperial Army troops didn't even fire a single shot before fleeing. The entire county was littered with weapons and ammunition discarded as they fled. Division One assembled three regiments, but time was short, and the assembled force totaled only 3,000 men. Yet, with just 3,000 men, they completely captured Zhuo County in three hours. Over 2,000 Imperial Army troops surrendered alone.

After the Zhuoxian Imperial Army suffered a devastating defeat, the 11th and 12th Independent Regiments of the Laishui Imperial Army were also attacked by the First Division. Their performance was much better than that of the Zhuoxian Imperial Army, as fewer than 300 of them surrendered on the battlefield. However, the rest fled quickly, and their whereabouts were impossible to find.

What made Tada Shun even more angry was that after hearing that Zhuo County had been captured by the Eighth Route Army, the First Army of the Imperial Army in Fangshan and the Second Army of the Imperial Army in Liangxiang immediately retreated to the county seat. Previously, these Imperial Army troops had followed the Japanese army to sweep the countryside, but now no one dared to go out.

Just leave the Japanese troops who were sweeping outside aside.

If there were no orders, they would even have wanted to run to Peking.

It can be said that the 30,000 North China Security Army was a complete pig teammate, and they betrayed the Japanese army. How could Tada Shun not be angry?

"Qi Sang, do you know how much valuable equipment your security forces have lost to the Eighth Route Army this time? And precisely because of your security forces' poor performance, our raid this time will be a complete failure."

"Commander, the Security Forces will definitely strengthen their training and this kind of thing will never happen again."

Chapter 360 The Rising Third Division

Yang Quanwu's division had been passive for more than half a month, but a sudden move changed the entire anti-mopping-up situation.

This was a feat worthy of being recorded in the annals of the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region's war. Initially, the Japanese army held an absolute advantage and sought a decisive battle with the main force of the First Division. Since the start of the counter-mopping-up operation, the First Division had been at a disadvantage, retreating step by step and losing significant base areas. However, after the First Division's attack, the Japanese forces were now in a dilemma.

The poor combat effectiveness of the North China Security Army surprised the Japanese.

The Japanese army had always distrusted the North China Security Army and doubted its combat effectiveness. But they never imagined that the combat effectiveness of the North China Security Army would be so poor. Is this an army?

What the Japanese army didn't know was that throughout the entire war, the North China Security Army had the weakest combat effectiveness among the puppet troops. Even when they encountered local Eighth Route Army units, such as county brigades and district squads, the North China Security Army would surrender and flee, let alone the main force of the Eighth Route Army.

If the Eighth Route Army militia had better weapons and equipment, the North China Security Army might not be able to defeat the militia. You can imagine what kind of combat effectiveness the North China Security Army has.

However, there was a reason for the North China Security Army's poor combat effectiveness. The army's lower-level officers were all educated, though they attended the military academy founded by Qi Xieyuan. There weren't many hardcore traitors among them. More importantly, the soldiers were conscripts. Qi Xieyuan, acting under the system of "chiefs of the occupied areas," forcibly conscripted the civilian population, forcing them to enlist. Those soldiers hadn't volunteered. How could such a combination be effective?

During the Hundred Regiments Campaign, the Eighth Route Army killed more Japanese troops than the puppet army. While only about 5,000 to 6,000 puppet troops surrendered, the Eighth Route Army alone captured over 18,000. The majority of these were members of the North China Security Force. During the Hundred Regiments Campaign, the North China Security Force consisted of nearly 2,000 military academy graduates alone, and the troops received about a year and a half of training. Yet, their combat effectiveness remained remarkably low.

Throughout the history of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, there were many North China Security Forces who rebelled and surrendered.

The current North China Security Army has only been trained for two or three months before going to the battlefield, and of course they don't know how to fight.

Among the puppet troops, the traitorous armed forces, that is, the local security forces, are actually the most tenacious.

After the First Division captured Zhuoxian and Laishui, the entire anti-mopping-up campaign in North China entered a new phase. The Japanese troops that had come out to mop up the war prepared to return to their bases. The Japanese troops fighting on the front lines were running low on weapons, ammunition, and logistical supplies. Zhuoxian and Laishui were occupied by the Eighth Route Army, cutting off the Japanese army's supply routes. Unfortunately, as difficult as it was to get there, it was even more difficult to leave.

What is guerrilla warfare? When the enemy advances, we retreat; when the enemy camps, we harass; when the enemy tires, we attack; when the enemy retreats, we pursue.

These are the 16 words that define the Eighth Route Army's battles. The Japanese army had been sweeping through the base area for over 20 days, and although they were consistently victorious, they were not without fatigue. After all, after so many days of fighting, the troops hadn't had a good rest.

Besides, it is not so easy to take advantage of the Eighth Route Army base.

The Eighth Route Army's main force, the Eighth Corps, dispersed and broke out, attacking the Japanese on the outer fronts. Local forces engaged in guerrilla warfare using small units.

The Japanese harassed them when they were marching, and when they were resting. After entering the Eighth Route Army base, there were always sneak attacks. This made the Japanese army physically and mentally exhausted.

Previously, he had been winning battles and had been able to suppress this fatigue with his mental strength. Now that the Japanese army was retreating, that spirit was broken. Physical and mental fatigue began to show directly.

Now that the Japanese army was about to withdraw, the various bases wouldn't let them do so easily. Local troops had planted mines along the way, and there were also various sniper attacks along the way. Previously, this was to slow down the Japanese army's advance into the bases; now, it was to slow down their withdrawal.

It can be said that there are battles almost every day in the base area now.

But the scale is very small.

But the Eighth Route Army wasn't afraid of being small. Killing one Japanese soldier at a time was considered an achievement. The Eighth Route Army valued the accumulation of small gains. The entire Eighth Route Army base area, both main and local units, was mobilized.

"Damn it, the Japanese army is going to run away. That's a nice thought."

The Third Division of the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region.

The two people are Huang Yong, commander of the Third Division, and Wang Zhi, political commissar.

Huang Yong was a renowned Eighth Route Army general who participated in the Autumn Harvest Uprising, the Battle of Jinggangshan, the Five Anti-Encirclement and Suppression Campaigns, and the 25,000-mile Long March. His extensive experience, coupled with his pedigree as a member of the Autumn Harvest Uprising, gave him a quick temper. He had previously been dissatisfied with his position as deputy commander.

Now that he was the commander of the Third Division, he had to make some achievements to show everyone that he was the most suitable candidate for the position. At the same time, he also wanted to show the other military divisions that the Third Division no longer needed support from the military districts and could develop independently.

"The First Division fought brilliantly in this battle, striking directly at the Japanese's weak spot. The Japanese are currently short of supplies. If they continue to delay in our base, they won't be able to leave."

"Everything Division One has right now should be what Division Three has."

Huang Yong expressed dissatisfaction when he heard Wang Zhi praising Division 1.

The original defense zone of the Third Division was in western Hebei, between Shijiazhuang and Baoding. If the Third Division had been more proactive and fought a few successful battles in Hebei to expand its influence, it would have been able to recruit the numerous Hebei civilian anti-Japanese forces surrounding Baoding and Ding. The number of civilian armed forces surrounding Baoding at the time was at least 30,000.

It’s a pity that the three-division team at that time was timid and thought too much.

At the same time, the performance of several anti-mopping-up operations was very poor. The civilian anti-Japanese armed forces around Baoding looked down on the Third District.

As a result, the Third District saw mediocre development. Instead, the First District emerged victorious. After entering Yi County from Laiyuan, they massively reorganized Hebei's civilian anti-Japanese armed forces. From these forces, they created six or seven main regiments, totaling over ten thousand men. Had this been assigned to the Third District, it wouldn't have been so criticized.

"Now that things have come to this, we should consider how to develop the three-district area. Our defense zone now covers more than ten counties and has a population of over two million. If we can grasp the situation well, we can also create more than ten regiments.

Wang Zhi was an outstanding political cadre from the Third Corps of the Central Red Army.

At the time, any unit where Wang Zhi served as political commissar was a top-tier force within the Third Corps, capable of fighting any tough or difficult battle. Furthermore, wherever he was stationed, he was able to quickly resolve internal issues and strengthen the unity of the troops. Consequently, his superiors greatly admired him. Commander Nie, recognizing his abilities, appointed him to the Third Division as political commissar.

Unfortunately, when he arrived at the third zone, he encountered the most troublesome thing.

Commander Chen Manyuan of the Third Division and Deputy Commander Huang Yong were at odds. Wang Zhi tried hard to get them to work together, but ultimately failed. The military district ultimately decided to transfer Chen Manyuan.

"Yes. Previously, the military district always took good care of our Third Division, which led to complaints from First Division and dissatisfaction from Second and Fourth Divisions. But all that is in the past. We, the Third Division, will use our military achievements to prove to them that we are the main force of the military district and do not need to be looked after.

Wang Zhi knew about the conflict between the former commander Chen Manyuan and Huang Yong.

But there's no point in saying this now.

The defense area of ​​the Third Division was very important, and it was an important base connecting the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region and the Ji-Zhong Military Region. His mission was to get the Third Division up and running as soon as possible.

So Wang Zhi immediately asked, "What do you think?"

"I will not let the Japanese 110th Regiment leave our base unless they leave anything behind."

"Should we reconsider this? We have a lot of plains here, so it's not easy to ambush the Japanese. A single charge from the Japanese would likely break through our positions. Furthermore, our base is between Shijiazhuang and Baoding, so the Japanese garrisons there might also come out."

"That's just right for attacking Shijiazhuang and Baoding."

Wang Zhi looked up at Huang Yong.

Wang Zhi realized Huang Yong wasn't joking, but was serious. He then said seriously, "If there's no feasible solution, I won't agree."

Wang Zhi knew Huang Yong was a famous warrior, but he had never imagined him to be so bold. However, as the political commissar, he could not allow Huang Yong to take such a risk.

Chapter 261 The Rising Third Division 2

"Come, take a look."

Huang Yong spread out the map and said confidently, "The 110th Infantry Regiment of the 110th Division has been operating in battalions since entering our base. Now that the Japanese want to evacuate, the troops must regroup. Their three battalions are all quite far apart, with the two closest battalions being over a hundred miles away. This gives us the opportunity to defeat them one by one. Among the three battalions, their third battalion, Yamazaki Tetsuro Battalion, has penetrated the deepest. Their vanguard even entered Fuping, heading straight for our Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region Headquarters. The other two battalions, one in Quyang and the other in Dingxian. We must concentrate our forces to attack the Yamazaki Tetsuro Battalion that has penetrated deep into the heart of our base."

"What if the other two Japanese battalions come to support us?"

"Given their current distance, it would take several days just to march to support them. But can their logistical supplies last for a few days?

If they truly decide to support us, then they'll undoubtedly be sending supplies from Shijiazhuang or Baoding. We should abandon the annihilation of Yamazaki Tetsuro's battalion and focus on attacking the logistics forces coming out of Shijiazhuang and Baoding. We suffered heavy losses in this counter-mopping-up operation, and ambushing several of their heavy-lift units could also help offset the losses in our base.

The Japanese army's combat effectiveness is indeed very strong.

After the 110th Regiment entered the Third District, it split into three groups, each carrying out sweeps in battalions. Each battalion would sweep across a county within the base area. This battalion-based sweep was done in such a way that the main forces of the Third District had to avoid them.

Because I really can’t beat him.

Even if a large regiment of the Eighth Route Army went up, it would not be able to defeat a large battalion unless it ambushed or launched a surprise attack. Even in the plain base area of ​​the Third Division, you could not defeat a large battalion even if you launched a surprise attack or ambushed it.

Because this place is different from the mountains.

In mountainous areas, as long as the terrain is well chosen, ambushes can block the Japanese army's breakout direction. By trapping the Japanese army in an ambush circle, they can slowly be annihilated. However, in plains, this is very difficult.

So what if you ambushed the Japanese army?

They can easily organize forces to break through and storm your position. Facing the Japanese attack, it is difficult to defend. In the plains, the Japanese army's tactical advantage and weapon advantage are very obvious.

This is also the difficulty faced by the Eighth Route Army in fighting in the plains.

In comparison, although a Japanese battalion in Shanxi was also very powerful, they were still very cautious in the Eighth Route Army's important base areas because they were easily ambushed by the Eighth Route Army. The Eighth Route Army could annihilate a Japanese battalion by organizing a few large regiments.

The 110th Regiment entered the base area and carried out a sweep in battalions. However, the battalions did not act together, and after reaching the county town, they were divided into squadrons. This was because the Japanese army was very confident in its own combat effectiveness.

But it was just a squadron of the Japanese army, and the third division fought few ambushes.

The reason was that at this time, the Eighth Route Army could not move in large numbers, fearing that they would be discovered by the Japanese. Therefore, they could only fight in small units, and therefore could not ambush a Japanese squadron.

"Our troops are scattered all over the place now, and it's difficult to gather them all in a short period of time."

Wang Zhi talked about the current problems of the troops.

Before the anti-mopping-up campaign, the Third Division was also strong. It possessed the 3rd, 24th, and 30th Regiments, as well as a cavalry regiment. The 24rd Regiment was originally the main force of the First Division. The 30th Regiment was formed after two guerrilla detachments of the First Division went to the military district for training. The 115th Regiment was a main force reorganized from troops involved in the Jidong uprising. The cavalry regiment was formed by combining the cavalry battalion of the former th Division, the cavalry battalion of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region, and the cavalry battalion of the First Division.

The Second and Fourth Districts are dissatisfied with the military district for this reason.

That is, the Third District has yet to form a main force regiment. None of the 10th, 11th, and 12th brigades, which were supposed to form main forces, have developed.

During the counter-mopping-up operation, the troops were operating separately. The Eighth Route Army had limited means of communication, and gathering the troops was a major challenge. Huang Yong said, "There's no need to wait for all the troops to gather. As long as we can gather a few battalions, we can start. The other troops can be allowed to return one after another."

"is this okay?"

Wang Zhi was very worried.

Huang Yong nodded and said, "Of course there is no problem. This Japanese brigade has penetrated deep into Fuping Weifengpiao, but they have also suffered heavy casualties. Moreover, their logistical supplies should be very few. In the current situation, they are the most anxious. What we have to do is to use the mountainous advantages in Fuping, Quyang and Tangxian to prevent them from leaving this place quickly. Wear them out, wear them down, and finally concentrate our troops to destroy them in one fell swoop. So now we are not anxious to concentrate all the troops. We just need to have enough troops to wear out and wear down this Yamazaki Tetsuro Brigade. Political Commissar, what do you think of my idea? I am not impulsive."

“It’s operable.”

Wang Zhi nodded.

Huang Yong’s idea is very practical.

Just because the situation has improved doesn't mean he should rush to lead a large force to destroy the enemy. When it comes to fighting, Huang Yong is indeed more resourceful than the previous commander of the Third Division. Huang Yong continued, "Split the cavalry regiment into two, each heading towards Baoding and Shijiazhuang. If any Japanese transport convoys are dispatched from Baoding or Shijiazhuang, immediately unite all surrounding forces and attack them. If we can choke off the transport line between Shijiazhuang and Baoding, the other two Japanese battalions will be completely powerless."

"Shijiazhuang, Baoding."

Wang Zhi looked at the map and said, "There aren't many troops in Shijiazhuang and Baoding right now.

"Yes. Especially in Shijiazhuang. Their troops dared not move at all. Shijiazhuang doesn't have many soldiers to begin with. If they dared to move out, Shijiazhuang would be an empty city. So it's difficult for them to get any transport support."

"Okay, done."

Wang Zhi no longer opposed Huang Yong's plan.

It has been a year and a half since the establishment of the three districts.