bayedsolid Chapter 351 Commander Gangcun's Response
Chapter 351 Commander Gangcun's Response
"Commander, is the Fifth War Zone of the Chinese government planning a counter-encirclement? They want to surround and destroy the 16th Division? Where do they get so many troops to accomplish this grand idea? Moreover, they also want to block our reinforcements. This is really unimaginable." Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Sadaichi Yoshimoto was the first to express his thoughts.
"Mr. Yoshimoto, there must be something we don't know about. The Fifth War Zone of the Chinese government must have used some means to deceive the investigation of our intelligence department. Such a large-scale attack could not have been decided at the last minute." Lieutenant General Okamura Yasuji said seriously.
"Moreover, the purpose of the Chinese army should be to encircle and destroy the 16th Division troops attacking the Zaoyang area. This is why they concentrated so many troops to quickly capture Xinye. If they just wanted to rescue the 31st Army in Zaoyang, there is no need to capture Xinye. They can directly rush out a gap in the west and support the 31st Army." Lieutenant General Okamura Yasuji continued to analyze the strategic intentions of the Fifth War Zone.
After listening to the analysis of Commander Lieutenant General Okamura Yasuji, Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Sadaichi Yoshimoto was frightened and broke out in a cold sweat. The appetite of the Fifth War Zone of the Chinese government was too big. They even wanted to swallow up a division of their own troops. How many troops did they mobilize to participate in the war?
"Commander, we don't have many troops in the direction of Changshudian to attack northward. Should we withdraw a regiment from the 3rd Division on the right wing to reinforce the 13th Division Commander Lieutenant General Ogisu Rikuhei?" Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Yoshimoto Sadaichi also immediately made suggestions based on the current situation.
"Well, let the 3rd Division transfer a regiment to Changshoudian and put it under the command of Lieutenant General Ogisu Rikuei. Recapture the positions on the north side of the highway as soon as possible, and then attack Shinno to the north to protect the rear route and supply line of the 16th Division. In addition, has the 13th Cavalry Regiment been contacted?" Commander Lieutenant General Yasuji Okamura also agreed with the suggestion of Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Yoshimoto Sadaichi.
Indeed, the only troops that Lieutenant General Ogisu Rikuhei, the commander of the 116th Division in Changshoudian, can command are an understaffed infantry battalion of the th Regiment and a logistics regiment. It is really too much to rely on these troops to break through the Chinese army's defensive positions.
"No, the 13th Cavalry Regiment has lost contact with us, and we have not received a reply to the telegrams we sent before." Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Sadaichi Yoshimoto reported the news very frustratedly.
Upon hearing the news, Commander Lieutenant General Okamura Yasuji narrowed his eyes slightly. After a while, he said, "Mr. Yoshimoto, we need to analyze the worst-case scenario. The 13th Cavalry Regiment may have been attacked by the Chinese army, and it is very likely that it has been wiped out by the Chinese army. Therefore, the markings on the sand table need to be updated. Between the Xiangzao Highway and Xinye, our troops may no longer exist, including the defense positions south of Xinye."
Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Sadaichi Yoshimoto nodded. Although this was a difficult thing to accept, as the commander Lieutenant General Yasuji Okamura said, the staff department he led must deduce and judge the battle situation based on the worst-case scenario.
The Chinese army secretly assembled so many troops and attacked the various troops on the north side of the highway almost at the same time. Under the sudden attack of the large-scale Chinese army, it was difficult for their unprepared troops to effectively block the Chinese army's attack.
"Understood, Commander. I will ask the staff department to quickly simulate and analyze the war situation. I have already sent people to investigate the intelligence department." Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Sadaichi Yoshimoto immediately stated that he would immediately handle all matters as required by Lieutenant General Yasuji Okamura.
In the direction of Changshoudian, upon receiving the news that the Chinese army had attacked the front, the commander of the 13th Division, Lieutenant General Ogisu Rikuhei, immediately gathered the only logistics regiment and personally led a part of the division headquarters personnel, the radio station and the logistics regiment to the position on the south side of the Xiangzao Highway.
Lieutenant General Ogisu Rikuhei is now very worried that the Chinese army will attack southwards and occupy the defensive positions on the south side of the highway. If that happens, there will be no defensible place in front of Changshoudian.
There are a lot of supplies and ammunition stored in Changshoudian now. These are the supplies prepared for the 16th Division attacking in the front. If the Chinese army had not attacked Changshoudian, it would have been a big trouble.
"Your Excellency the division commander, there is a telegram from the headquarters." Major General Ishikawa Takuma, Chief of Staff of the 13th Division, walked quickly to the division commander, Lieutenant General Ogisu Rikuhei, and said.
After Lieutenant General Ogisu Rikuhei took the telegram and read it, he breathed a sigh of relief. The content of the telegram eased his anxious mood.
"Mr. Ishikawa, please contact the 3rd Division and ask them to send a fully-powered regiment. Also, ask Lieutenant General Susumu Fujita to assign an artillery regiment. We don't have artillery now, so it will be difficult to quickly capture the Chinese army's positions." Lieutenant General Ogisu Rikuhei also made more detailed requirements for the troops to be dispatched.
Chief of Staff Major General Ishikawa Takuma nodded, and then ordered the division's communications staff to quickly send a telegram to the 3rd Division. At the same time, he said with a little concern: "Your Excellency the division commander, the headquarters has determined that our troops in the front have been wiped out by the Chinese army. Isn't this a bit too pessimistic?"
"No, Ishikawa-kun, I think the headquarters' judgment is correct. Our troops in the front have suffered heavy losses in the battle. Facing the sudden large-scale attack of the Chinese army, it is very likely that they will be wiped out by the Chinese army. Even if there are still officers and soldiers left, they will not be able to cross the defensive positions of the Chinese army on the north side of the highway. We should not harbor luck." Lieutenant General Ogisu Rikuhei looked at the sky that was about to turn white, and his heart was very sad.
"Let the troops speed up and get to the positions on the south side of the road as soon as possible to guard against possible large-scale attacks by the Chinese army. The positions on the south side must be held." Lieutenant General Ogisu Rikuhei looked at the troops rushing around him, and then ordered the Chief of Staff Major General Ishikawa Takuma.
On the defensive position on the south side of the Xiang-Zao Highway, Colonel Osamu Yamamura, commander of the 116th Regiment of the th Division, was extremely nervous. The Second Battalion on the southern position had suffered the heaviest losses in the previous Changshoudian battle, with two-thirds of its troops lost in the battle.
It is precisely because of this that the Second Battalion was placed in the relatively safest position on the south side of the Xiangzao Highway for defense.