Canteen System Assistance Notes

Due to poor industrial development capabilities, the Japanese army lacked steel bars and steel profiles;

They even lack the "bamboo tendons" to make do - the kind of bamboo tendons that can be used as additives need to be made from high-quality perennial bamboo in the south, and the high shipping costs and limited transportation capacity make this idea very "idealistic".

The North China Army could only requisition cement while "requiring supplies" everywhere. Bricks, blue and yellow, whole and half, bought, demolished, requisitioned, looted, were taken from ruins, houses, graves, and temples. Mined and readily available stones, beautiful and ugly, long, flat, regular, and jagged, were brought in from mines, rocky beaches, gardens, and the mountains and wilderness.

But that wasn't enough. With all sorts of materials piled up everywhere, the North China Army suddenly realized they lacked the necessary workers for the civil engineering work. In the well-security areas, the renowned bricklayers from the surrounding villages had already been forced to work on the walls by the village chiefs and their lackeys. Even the newly recruited puppet soldiers with some skills were already assigned to the construction sites... They could only make up their minds and try to build the bunkers while pouring mortar... But even that seemed like they didn't have enough mortar mixing skills...

all in all......

"In short, this is the defender's natural disadvantage. It's unsolvable and powerless to resolve."

At that time, Okamura Yasuji sighed. He did not mourn the fact that the North China Army was defeated in the comprehensive offensive, key offensive and comprehensive defense. The new "key defense" immediately entered the battlefield.

"Then we must designate key defense areas and prioritize the construction of defense lines in these areas." "That's all we can do."

"There's an old Chinese saying: 'Shoot the horse first when shooting a man, and capture the leader first when capturing a thief.' I believe the Communist Army's breakthrough capabilities are already quite formidable. They will certainly try to paralyze our command center." At the meeting to determine the direction of the Communist Army's attack, Iimura Joi, who was considered "old-fashioned," spoke first. He pointed his pointer at a point on the map.

Zhangyuan City! A railway runs directly from here to Peking. The Communist Army only needs to advance from here. If they can break through our defenses, they can quickly advance eastward, taking the fastest route to the Peking defenses. They could even block our escape route and strategically encircle us. And the most likely force to carry out this mission is the Communist Army's resilient, terrifying, and invincible Apanasenko Mechanized Corps.

Due to some inexplicably fabricated intelligence, the Japanese army seemed to have long believed that a mysterious Soviet volunteer corps existed within the ranks of the Eighth Route Army, commanded by the renowned Soviet commander Apanasenko. Using the codename "Yang Jisheng," a figure long since deceased, he commanded this terrifying mecha corps for the Eighth Route Army, unleashing unstoppable victory on the battlefields of North China. Consequently, Japanese Foreign Minister Shigemitsu Mamoru protested this to the Soviets, but was met with a blunt denial and a taunting retort, "Perhaps Comrade Apanasenko is on your mind."

However, this statement has always been popular in the Japanese Army, especially in the North China Army.

"The General Staff's view...the Communist Army's Apanasenko Mechanized Corps is more likely to launch an attack from the Zhengtai Line, also known as 'Jingxing'."

Chief of Staff Mitsuharu Oshiro, in charge of the North China Army's staff, expressed the General Staff's view: "The Communist Army's mainstay medium-range tank, the British Valentine, is heavy and inconvenient to maneuver, but its thick armor can withstand all our previously equipped anti-tank weapons and can break through our defenses head-on. The Shotai Line area is perfectly suited to such a 'head-on' tactic."

"If the Communists use their superior weaponry and mechanized corps to break through the Zhengtai Line defenses, our army will be cut off from the north and south. The entire army will be unable to maneuver north and south to support each other, and will be in a very passive position."

However, just as the Japanese army selected the "key defense targets" and began to build many concrete bunkers along the line from Zhangyuan to Beiping, as well as around Shimen-Zhengding, the "Undead Legion" that the Japanese always worried about - Yang Jisheng's Mobile Corps, was gathering in the temporary base in the clouds.

Under the cover of night and the "warning curtain", they gathered their various tanks and artillery pieces and boarded the train quietly and orderly, just like in daily training and regular combat.

"Go south, go south..."

Commander Yang Jisheng, a "dead man" in the eyes of the Japanese army, was looking at a map in the command carriage.

His gaze traveled south from Yunzhong, passing Jinyang and Pingyang, turning onto the temporary railway built during the Shanxi campaign, and passing the recently opened Yumenkou Railway Bridge, which ran parallel to the Yumenkou Highway Bridge. His gaze then stopped in the Guanzhong region and eventually extended westward, stopping at Luoyi, the "frontline of disaster relief" in the current liberated areas.

"Hey, the Kwantung Army, the Central China Army, and the North China Army - what a great thing it would be if the three of them could fight together." Yang Jisheng thought.

Chapter 780: The Stars of Taihang Mountain Brilliant

(Personnel Inventory Chapter)

Since evacuating from Northeast China by plane, Yang Jisheng's life trajectory has completely changed.

He did not, despite countless betrayals and vacillations during the bitter cold of winter, lead his last comrades, quenching their thirst with snow water and filling their stomachs with cotton wool, fighting the enemy to the bitter end and dying a heroic death. Instead, Yang Jisheng began leading the "Field Army Mobile Corps," formed from the remnants of the Anti-Japanese United Army, as the Eighth Route Army's key strategic mobile force.

This humorous yet meticulous veteran of the Anti-Japanese Allied Forces, while simultaneously learning formal strategic and tactical thinking, also actively embraced and absorbed new ideas for future troop and equipment deployment. Having experienced the campaigns in Western Inner Mongolia and Shanxi Province, as well as a series of battles both large and small in between, this "resurrected" Henan native had become one of the most feared commanders of the "Naked" unit, a terrifying presence that kept many Japanese commanders awake at night.

And now, this commander, who was like a pilgrim on the land of North China, steadily moving towards his hometown, was taking a train south with his partners, heading to Luoyi, which would be one of the starting points of the battle, to prepare to carry out their battle mission -

This battle is the "North China Campaign", which is very important in the history of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression in this time and space, and even in the history of World War II.

Because launching an offensive campaign on the North China Plain would inevitably turn into a decisive battle between the Eighth Route Army and the North China Army or even part of the Kwantung Army, the Eighth Route Army made considerable preparations for this, and the "show" of preparation was also quite grand.

From the industrial construction and internal cultivation that began in 1937 to strengthen the material foundation, to Zhou Enlai, Deng Xiaoping, and Li Keqiang's "Three Swords to the South" in 1939, and the simultaneous "Ideological Rectification Movement" in multiple bases to adjust thinking, to the field army construction and the "one million field army small goal" in the second half of 1939, as well as the simultaneous diplomacy with the Soviet Union and the Allies...

The six years of experience, setbacks and persistence of this people's army, perhaps starting from May 1928, have now transformed into a strong material foundation, scientific guiding ideology and firm ideological beliefs. Supplemented by some super-temporal and space-time assistance from the future, they have grown enough to launch a decisive battle in the form of a "regular decisive battle" that can reverse the war.

Since it is a decisive battle, its geographical scale and time span will inevitably exceed any previous battle. The Communists, who are pragmatic, will inevitably need to adjust their command system according to the actual situation.

The Central Military Commission, located in the rear, established a special campaign command center. The distinctive "North China Campaign General Front Committee" was soon established. Through the high-speed (super-time and space) Internet between different canteen branches, the "areas between different bases" were also connected.

Political Commissar Wang, whose health had greatly improved, took over the helm of the Central Military Commission from Xu Xiangqian, sharing shifts with General Peng and Vice Chairman Zhou, overseeing the overall progress of the campaign. Chief of Staff Zuo, skilled in staff work, took on the responsibilities of the Operations Department, responsible for providing advisory support on the overall direction of the campaign and coordinating the long-range air force's coordination with the larger army. Chairman Zhu, who rarely participated in direct command, brought Secretary Ren Peiguo with him to sit in the conference room at the Fushe Canteen headquarters to provide support for the comrades in the command group.

After all, as long as they are on the scene, everyone will inexplicably feel confident and confident in their hearts.

Compared with the Central Military Commission's Campaign Command where most people worked together, the General Front Committee of the North China Campaign rarely had opportunities for "family reunions."

Because although the office of the front committee was set up in Jinyang City, the core of Shanxi Province, the general front committee composed of Liu Mingzhao, Zhang Hao, General He, Nie Yunzhen and Yang Jisheng would be responsible for the command of a series of battles "from the liberated areas to the east, across the Taihang Mountains to the North China Plain". Therefore, they had to command millions of field troops, local troops and guerrillas to fight on a wide front of about 70 kilometers from north to south, and they would inevitably be "less together and more apart".

According to the arrangement and coordination of the Central Military Commission, Yang Jisheng, who was located in the southernmost part of the battle line, would lead the mobile corps of the Eighth Route Army to cooperate with the troops from the original Taihang base area.

The "Central Plains Field Army" composed of the former 38th Army of the National Army and the newly trained troops in Guanzhong was responsible for

Battles along the Yellow River; the "North China Field Army", which is mainly composed of field army troops from the northwest Shanxi, Suiyuan, Beiyue base areas and reinforcements from the border areas, will be commanded by He and Nie, and will fight north of the Zhengtai Line, especially in Zhangyuan City - but in this regard, General He is mainly responsible for commanding the overall situation, while Nie Yunzhen is responsible for logistics management and transportation construction; the specific combat command will be the responsibility of the "Two Yangs" of the "North China Field Army", namely Yang Chengwu and Yang Shangkun.

As for Liu Mingzhao and his good partner, Political Commissar Zhang Hao...

They would be responsible for overall control of the battlefront and directing specific battles along the Zhengtai Line and areas south of it. However, because Commander Liu Mingzhao, Political Commissar Zhang Hao, and Political Department Director Cai Shufan were either "half-military strategists," suffered from high blood pressure, or were "one-armed generals," in addition to directing the battle, they were also directly required by the Military Commission to supervise each other, comply with health care physicians for checkups, take medication regularly, and get enough rest, refraining from staying up all night. Therefore, at least for the early stages of the battle, this "God of War + Political Commissar" combination was "forced" to remain at the Front Committee headquarters in Jinyang City, acting as "guardians."

Fortunately, the convenient means of communication now allow them to quickly contact the front-line troops without having to go forward. Even if Liu Mingzhao stays in Jinyang City, he can still "decide the victory thousands of miles away" and implement effective battle command.

-------one

Of course, in addition to the main "Taihang Mountain Front", there are corresponding commanders in charge of many bases and battlefields in North China and even Central China.

For example, in the Guanzhong region, Dong Shaozhong, who had previously overseen the training and daily operations of the Railway Protection Army, the Border Field Army, and a portion of the Guanzhong Field Army in the Northwest, also arrived in Guanzhong under the Central Committee's directive, leading the "Northwest Field Army," representing the reserve force. He and Political Commissar Li Zhuoran would serve as a backup force for the "Central Plains Field Army" on the southern front of the Central Committee, continuing their duties as the "Iron Flow Guard."

Considering that the National Army, which serves as a background board, is still able to breathe and make trouble, Ye Yiwei, who has been dealing with the National Army for a long time, will work together with Xu Zijing, who was sent by the Central Military Commission, to deter the double-dealers in the National Army, assist the patriots in the National Army, and deal with the reactionaries in the National Army during the battle in Henan Province.

At the same time, the 101st and Luo Shenzhen would initiate a campaign in Shandong Province, commanding the battles primarily led by the "Shandong Field Army" (Shanye) to liberate Quancheng, Weihaiwei, and other areas. Chen Shijun and Su Zhiyu, based in the Jiangsu-Anhui region, would also lead the "Central China Field Army," reorganized from the New Fourth Army, to participate in raids and blockades against Japanese forces along the Jinpu Road, the Grand Canal, and the Yangtze River. Simultaneously, the command structures of the central and southern Hebei bases, and the Hubei-Henan-Anhui bases, were all prepared to take over the overall command of the campaign and initiate coordinated, containment, and auxiliary combat missions.

And now, it is finally time to test the results of this star-studded lineup.

"The wind blows across the river, the rain darkens the village, the sound of the mountains is like the rolling of the sea. The firewood in the stream is soft and the felt is warm, my cat slave and I do not go out." Below, I will tell you the time:

On February 26, 1943, accompanied by encrypted signals and broadcast notifications within the radio frequency band, all officers and soldiers guarding the cafeteria branch, radio station or radio-type signal terminal looked at their watches, electronic watches, alarm clocks and timers.

"It is now, February 26th, in the morning, 5 o'clock sharp."

After this strangely sung announcement ended, engines roared, horses neighed, and men shouted along the nearly 700-kilometer-long battlefront. Under the dawning sky in the east, radio signals raced forward: "All units, move to attack positions!"

"The battle is ready, and the attack will be launched according to the combat plan."

Chapter 781: North China Surge (⑴) Longitudinal Wave Arrives First

The main battles of the North China Campaign undoubtedly took place during the process of "rushing down the Taihang Mountains."

However, on the long front line from Zhangyuan in the north to Zhengxian in the south, the Taihang Mountains running from north to south restricted the Eighth Route Army's route down the mountain. Except for the battlefields around Zhengxian, which had already advanced in the plains on both sides of the Yellow River, the Eighth Route Army probably needed to choose an offensive route from the traditional "Eight Passes of Taihang" and launch an attack on the Japanese army that was relying on the Pinghan Line for defense in the foothills.

Moreover, some of the "陉" are obviously not suitable for the deployment of large troops, and cannot give full play to the firepower advantage currently possessed by the Eighth Route Army.

This did not help the attackers to take advantage of their ability to "arbitrarily choose the time and location of the attack." However, the Japanese, with their beggar-like imperialist mentality, were unable to dig deep trenches and build trenches at all the optional assault locations along the Eight Gorges of Taihang. They could only use limited cement and manpower to build fortifications in areas they believed were most likely to be attacked.

The Japanese army chose Zhangyuan and Shimen, and the Eighth Route Army, after conducting a thorough investigation, chose...

It must be an area where the Japanese army did not set up strict defenses due to objective conditions.

"Zheng County in Henan Province has come under heavy attack from the Communist Army. Contact with Dengfeng and Gong County has been lost, and Communist Army fronts have appeared around Sishui and Mi County!"

"The enemy is using massive artillery fire to cover the mech and infantry charge. We can tell there's at least one 'group army', most likely a 'naked mech army'. Our forces will be unable to resist!"

"The Snow Corps (36th Division) is moving in accordance with Plan 'Protection No. 8'. Requesting tactical guidance!"

Tieshishi Hutong in Peking has entered a wartime state. People holding telegrams and file folders are running around, delivering orders that are coming in like snowflakes.

To prevent the "riddler" habit from leading to misinterpretations and thus affecting the course of the campaign, thus repeating the First Army's mistakes, Iimura Joi and Okamura jointly promoted a campaign to reduce "ventriloquism" within the North China Army in 1943. Although eradicating this deeply ingrained atmosphere of reading the air was difficult, at least the various units were now much more straightforward and direct in sending out telegrams requesting assistance.

However, this also posed a more serious impact on the staff and commanders in the Japanese command.

"What nonsense! It's only been a short time, less than four hours? How could the Communist Army directly break through Gongxian and Dengfeng!" "The Snow Corps must have lied about the military intelligence! Send a telegram to confirm!"

"No quarreling! Silence!"

Lieutenant General Iimura Jo held his glasses and shouted at the staff that was about to lose control. Commander Okamura had already left Peking to "consider wartime needs."

Go to Sanhe County to set up a "backup (crossed out) combat command center", and the new accurate group number is: 775111838

Iimura Joi, commander of the "Seventh Army", is carrying out the command work of the Peking Command on behalf of his superior.

"Anything could happen against the Communist Army's naked mecha army! Have you all forgotten the battle in Jin Province?"

The noisy staff headquarters fell silent. Not to mention the battle in Shanxi Province, even the scene during the battle in western Meng was still as if it were yesterday - flying over hundreds of kilometers,

Even if they didn't have any

Despite progress, the North China Army still needed to pay a huge price to stop the terrifying offensive of the Chilu Mecha Army. However, just as a suffocating atmosphere of pessimism was about to fill the command room, Chief of Staff Okiroto Sanji took over and encouraged everyone:

"Gentlemen! The Communist Army only has one mecha corps! Their presence in Zheng County means they won't be in Zhangyuan or Zhengding! Right now, the Snow Corps is facing a dual threat from heavy artillery and mechas. Send a message immediately, allowing them to move in, and then deploy defenses according to Contingency Plan 'Protection No. 8'!"

"Hi!"

Before this battle, the diligent Iimura, along with Okamura's staff, compiled eight contingency plans for the Eighth Route Army to attack from different areas, ranging from Protection 1 to Protection 8. This set of plans was so comprehensive that it even included scenarios such as the main force of the Communist Army moving south, attacking Zhengxian from the south bank of the Yellow River, and seizing the Yellow River Bridge.

Now, this plan, which was originally considered the most unlikely, comes in handy.

According to Contingency Plan No. 8, the Japanese 36th Division, currently stationed in Zhengxian, Xuchang, and Luohe, must rapidly decentralize its forces, retreat across the Yellow River, and reunite with the 106th Division, formerly part of the Central China Army, in Jiaozuo and Xinxiang. Simultaneously, the 50th Division (formerly the 1st Independent Mixed Division), stationed in Anyang, Handan, and Hebi, must shift forces southward to join forces with the two allied armies, resisting each ally and gradually retreating northward to delay the Communist advance until the Kwantung Army's 28th Division in Zhengding arrives by train. This will allow them to form a concentrated force of over 8 men and launch a counterattack.

During the retreat, the 36th Division was also tasked with destroying the Yellow River Bridge, sabotaging the railway, and transporting food from the Luohe area. However, Okamura Yasuji stated that if there was truly no time, he would allow the commander on the ground to "abandon some tasks, depending on the situation, and he would not blame them."

However, this contingency plan essentially failed to consider the Communist Army's "naked mechanized army": even in the Japanese army's worst-case scenario, the Communist Army fighting on the southern edge of the Taihang Mountains was nothing more than a field army reinforced with 122mm heavy artillery. Furthermore, the Japanese army, with only partial information and facts, had no regard for the Eighth Route Army's "growth potential."

From the Shanxi Campaign in early 1942 to the current North China Campaign, the Eighth Route Army is no longer the same Eighth Route Army as before!

Bang, bang, whoosh, whoosh!

The high-energy column of gunpowder spewed out a long flame, and the aluminum-containing combustion products released a smoke screen that blocked the sun. Among them, red and orange flames that were enough to illuminate the earth continued to burn, making loud noises like organ music, and vigorously split the sky and fields that seemed never to change.

They rose with a roar and landed with a bang. Then, driven by chemical forces, they released death to all people - south of the Yellow River and north of Luoyi, the Eighth Route Army's rocket artillery regiment was roaring.

The "Hail" rocket artillery regiment, organized into two launch battalions, each with three companies, possessed a total of 24 launch vehicles. With a full regimental salvo, they could unleash 576 high-explosive rockets with 18-kilogram warheads at a range of 12.5 kilometers in 16 seconds, reducing to dust any Japanese troops who had emerged from their positions during the usual pause in artillery fire, ready to engage our forces. Soldiers leading the frontline offensive reported that the number of Japanese soldiers still alive in the battalion-level positions within the rocket range could be counted on two hands.

There are two such independent rocket artillery corps under the Eighth Route Army Mobile Corps led by Yang Jisheng.

The offensive power of this "complete" mobile corps, which boasts three motorized infantry divisions, one tank regiment, several artillery regiments, three field divisions, and several auxiliary forces, reinforced by independent rocket artillery units, is far beyond the capabilities of the 36th Division, even with its "prepared plans."

In less than 4 hours, the Japanese troops responsible for resisting the Eighth Route Army in the Luoyi direction in Dengfeng and Gongxian were declared "fallen". In the midst of the storm-like attack, the Japanese army could not even send out the first-hand situation of the attacked enemy. They could only make a vague judgment that "the enemy's firepower seems to be at the scale of an army group, and it may be a naked mecha army."

But Yang Jisheng didn't even intend to give the Japanese army time to be surprised or impressed!

After breaking through these two places, he took advantage of the motorized troops' fast battlefield mobility and divided the troops into two groups to continue the attack: the troops attacking Gongxian quickly completed the march transition, and with the attached pontoon brigade and corps engineering units, they advanced along the Luo River in an attitude of being ready to attack any situation, and went straight to Wenxian; the troops attacking Dengfeng, with reinforced rocket artillery units, rushed eastward in order to continue to break through Mixian and Xinzheng.

The former will, while feinting an attack on Sishui (also known as Hulao Pass), build a pontoon bridge from the mouth of the Luo River in Wenxian to cross the river, and head straight for the Wuzhi area to cooperate with our troops in the direction of Zhongtiao Mountain to encircle part of the Japanese 106th Division, which is in a support and reserve position, and cut off the 36th Division's escape route to the north. The latter will penetrate into the "thigh" of the 36th Division along the Pinghan Line towards Xuchang and Luohe, and cut off the return route of the 223rd Infantry Regiment of the 36th Division left south of Zhengxian.

You want to leave after getting beaten, right? But it's not that easy!

Chapter 782: North China Surge (2) Self-destructive Madness

Even though stunned by the Mobile Corps' heavy blow, the Japanese were still an imperialist force that had at least reached a passing grade. Without further orders from headquarters, the 36th Division, having already lost two battalions, quickly mobilized. They quickly abandoned their food transport mission. Several regiments collected their flags and packed them, along with their flag-guarding squadrons, and then the entire army began to assemble for a "pivot." While the troops looked disorganized, their movement was quite methodical.

These troops loaded their artillery onto trains and then set off northward in large numbers under cover of night to avoid the "man-eating ghosts" that had occasionally appeared in the sky since 1942. The infantry who could take the trains took the trains, while those who could not take the trains retreated northward on foot along the railway line. The troops could also take turns to provide cover for each other to prevent fierce attacks by the Communist army.

Japanese troops stationed in Zhengxian County also began placing explosives on the railway bridge, intending to demolish it once their own troops had evacuated the Yellow River, thereby trapping the Communists on the south side. Furthermore, the 106th Division of the Central China Army in Jiaozuo and Xinxiang to the north also began gathering its forces, preparing to move south to support the retreat of its allies.

After all, the Communist Army's mecha units are currently south of the Yellow River! To escape from the Zhongtiao Mountains north of the Yellow River, they must first break through the Chen Pass, then pass through Jiyuan and Qingyang. Furthermore, this route is narrow and difficult to defend, making it difficult for the Communist Army's large forces to deploy smoothly. With this in mind, there's still plenty of time to implement Plan No. 8!

However, on the day the battle was launched, that is, the day after our army entered the attack preparation area, this idea of ​​"absolutely in time" was bankrupt. After all...

Who says the Eighth Route Army will necessarily fight according to your Japanese "contingency plan"?

The eastward attack on Zhengxian from Luoyi inherently involved joint action on both sides of the Yellow River. In other words, if the Yellow River did not flow through this area, the Eighth Route Army forces in Zhongtiao Mountain and Luoyi would have joined forces and launched a joint eastward attack. Therefore, at the same time that Yang Jisheng's mobile corps launched its attack, the Central Plains Field Army from southern Shanxi and the Taihang region also launched an offensive.

They attacked eastward from Yuanqu and southward from Jincheng, which had been recovered about a year earlier, making a move toward Chenguanxing and Taihangxing. If the Japanese wanted to stop these two exceptionally sharp "detachments" here, they would have to station at least six battalions.

This first reduced the number of troops that the 106th Division could send south to support, and slowed down its speed in gathering troops. After all, when the front line was bathed in a barrage of 107mm mountain rockets, 75mm mountain artillery, and 100mm mortars, it was extremely difficult to successfully carry out the task of "withdrawing."

Meanwhile, a mobile corps, equipped with MB/ME Stuart light tanks and their variants, crossed the Yellow River from the recently liberated Luo River estuary in Wenxian County. After the pontoon bridge unit completed its three-hour field bridge-building operation, the mobile corps, having taken time to resupply, led its attached field army units across the Yellow River at lightning speed, charging directly towards Wuzhi and striking directly into the rear of the Japanese 106th Division.

For a time, the Japanese troops around Zheng County were in chaos!

If we use a more popular method to describe the current situation, then the operation of Corps Commander Yang Jisheng is roughly like this:

While the counter-terrorist team outside the bank was attacking, the terrorists from the 106th Division, hiding inside the bank building, attempted to hold a corridor, buying time for their 36th Division to transfer the money. However, instead of a frontal assault as planned, the counter-terrorist team outside the door first broke into the building through the windows and back door, entangled the 106th Division's minions, and then blew through the wall to rush in from behind the 106th Division.

To put it more simply, the point is that the mobile corps' unexpected division of troops to cross the river cut off the retreat of at least six battalions of the 106th Division, putting it into a critical state of being surrounded.

Now, the mobile corps faced the backs of Japanese soldiers from at least three directions. They were evenly scattered along the Jiyuan-Qinyang-Yuanyang line, round, shiny, and as fragile as eggs, waiting for Yang Jisheng's troops to strike them one by one with hammers.

The only problem the soldiers encountered was that there were too many devils' heads in front of them and they didn't know which one to hit!

Fortunately, the commander in this direction, Wang Yachen, was not confused. On the one hand, he left the attached field army to attack westward to cooperate with the friendly forces attacking from Chenguan and Jincheng, and catch the six battalions of Japanese soldiers in a trap; on the other hand, he took all the infantry and armored units that could climb onto trucks, and marched eastward from Wuzhi in motorized manner, heading straight for the "Yuanyang" area.

This is a key node of the Xinxiang-Kaifeng Railway. Once this point is cut off, not only will the Japanese army be unable to escape to the north through the Zhengzhou Railway Bridge, but they will not even be able to obtain support from the Japanese army in Xuzhou through the newly opened railway. At the same time, our army can also take the initiative to attack Kaifeng to the south. At this time, the Japanese 36th Division, with nearly 18,000 people, which is still located south of the Yellow River, will become our army's "prey in the pocket" strategically.

Yuanyang is only 50 kilometers east of Wuzhi, and the two places are connected by a highway. Even if they need to conduct a "random raid," this distance is practically within reach for the motorized mobile corps! Today, before nightfall on February 27th, the mobile corps is confident they will reach Yuanyang!

----------

"What? This... This is impossible! Your Excellency! On the south bank of the Yellow River, there are still at least six battalions of our army. Even the 223rd Regiment's headquarters is still in the process of being transferred! Now that the transfer has been completed and our troops have arrived on the north bank, the only ones left are the division headquarters, the search regiment, and part of the 1st Battalion of the 222nd Regiment..."