noffsinger Chapter 808 Two Cups of Poisoned Wine
Chapter 808 Two Cups of Poisoned Wine
On April 1944, 4, the 18th Division and the 34th Division had all crossed the river and assembled outside the city of Hengyang, preparing to launch an attack two days later.
The 34th Division, which crossed the river first, decided to use two battalions of troops to raid the airport outside Hengyang City, completely cutting off Hengyang City's contact with the outside world.
After a day and night of fighting, the Hengyang Airport was occupied by the Japanese because the defenders in the city could not go out to provide support. A large amount of weapons, ammunition and food supplies fell into the hands of the Japanese.
The news of the fall of Hengyang Airport reached the rear, and the calls for petitions in Chongqing rose again.
Li Zongren's running back and forth made Chang Guangzhou very dissatisfied, and he openly mocked him like a noisy fly.
"Xun'en, my sworn brother really wants to defeat me! But does he think that the independent column's participation in the battle can turn the situation around? I don't think so!"
Chang went back and forth in Guangzhou for several times, and then directly asked Chen Bulei to pass on this message, which could be regarded as a response to the petition!
Li Zongren sneered. Before the war, he said that Hengyang would be absolutely safe. Now he is saying with great eloquence that even if the independent column joined the war, it might not be useful?
Li Zongren immediately found Li Muzhi and asked the independent column to send a small force into the war zone, just to set an example.
"General Li, this may not be appropriate. Although I don't understand military affairs, if such a small force goes deep into the enemy's territory alone without any supplies, will the Central Army lend a hand if they encounter any emergency? I don't think so."
Li Zongren looked ashamed. From a military perspective, if a small group of troops entered an enemy-dense area without effective logistical support, they would be in great danger.
"Muzhi, Hengyang is in imminent danger. The location of the independent column is far away from Hunan and Guangxi. If we wait until the critical moment to send troops, I am afraid that even if the independent column is fast, it will be too late to save the defeat!
Once Hengyang City falls, tens of thousands of civilians will die in the battle!"
Li Zongren's moral blackmail caught Li Muzhi off guard. He thought to himself:
It was Chang Guangzhou who prevented the independent column from going south. How come the blame for the destruction of the city and the death of people is now placed on our heads? Is this the legendary "non-stick pan"?
"General Li, I will report the situation to the Pingshun Headquarters immediately. As for the final result, I cannot guarantee it. For the sake of the people in Hunan and Guangxi, General Li must continue to work hard. You and I should work together!"
"Well, I'll try harder, but he won't give in to my persuasion. I still have a long way to go! I still need to come up with convincing evidence!"
Li Muzhi wanted to throw the word "evidence" in his face. The official just asked for evidence with a few words, and the soldiers under him risked their lives. Did he owe it to you?
He suppressed his anger, maintained the last bit of rationality, and said to Li Zongren:
"Okay, I'll report this to my superiors. But regardless of whether our independent column sends troops south to fight or not, we must be worthy of the heavens above, the earth below, and our own conscience in the middle."
Although Li Muzhi did not directly refute Li Zongren, he still made him blush.
Although it is said that a gentleman is judged by deeds rather than intentions, he is still a little selfish and seems to be taking advantage of the situation.
Li Muzhi quickly left the newspaper, returned to the office, and immediately reported Li Zongren's "request" to the Pingshun Headquarters.
Li Yunlong and Wang Meng at the Pingshun Command Center waited anxiously for a month. The Fourth Army and the Fifth Army had already arrived at the designated locations. Seeing Changsha fall and Hengyang being surrounded, they were extremely anxious.
The telegram from the Chongqing Office was like a glass of poisoned wine that might be toxic.
If you don’t drink it, you won’t get the effect of being tipsy.
Drink it. It's not fatal, but it won't make you feel good.
"Lao Li, what do you think?"
Li Yunlong pondered for a moment. He thought that under the pressure from Li Zongren and all walks of life, Chang Guanghuo would give in and at least let their air force arrive at the battlefield first to provide air support.
However, Chang Guangzhou was unexpectedly more afraid of the independent column than the Japanese.
Maybe in his heart, the Japanese will be eliminated or driven out eventually, it is just a matter of time. But the independent column is the powerful opponent who will compete with him for territory and the world in the future.
They all underestimated Chang Guangzhou's madness and selfishness.
"Mengzi, the arrow is on the string and has to be shot. I can't just sit there and watch our people suffer. Otherwise, we should just replace all the guns in our hands with fire sticks!
The middle and lower-level officers and soldiers of the Central Army did nothing wrong, and the ordinary people of Hunan did nothing wrong. The ones who did something wrong were their top brass!
Therefore, I suggest sending out the Liangshan Special Forces to specifically target the high-ranking officers of the Japanese. Since Chongqing asked us to show our swords, let’s show them!”
Li Yunlong's idea coincides with Wang Meng's.
But he was more of a battlefield perspective. Now the little devils were advancing rapidly, with a momentum of cutting the Gordian knot. Since the large forces of the independent column could not rush to the rescue quickly, they would send out elite troops to deal with their senior officers, battalion commanders, wing commanders, brigade commanders, and preferably their division commanders!
Once the Japanese's command system was disrupted, the whole army would be routed at worst, or the attack would be temporarily suspended or generals would be replaced at the last minute.
This way, we will buy enough time!
"Okay, let's go to the Liangshan Special Forces!"
Wang Meng and Li Yunlong took a jeep and came to the Liangshan Special Forces near the airport. They heard thunderous shouts before they reached the training ground.
The two men rushed to the training ground with serious expressions and saw Duan Peng leading the Liangshan Special Forces Team and the second and third teams training and fighting against each other.
When Duan Peng saw the two leaders arriving, he immediately trotted over and saluted.
"Comrade Commander, Comrade Chief of Staff, Liangshan Special Forces, Team 2, and Team 3 are conducting combat training. Please give us your instructions!"
Li Yunlong returned the greeting and then said:
"When is the earliest we can set off?"
When Duan Peng heard that they were going to attack, he immediately stood at attention excitedly.
"Report, half an hour!"
"Set off in fifteen minutes and prepare to parachute into the heart of Hengyang. The goal is to assassinate the senior officers of the Japanese without restriction!"
"Yes!"
On April 4, the resupplied 20th Division and 34th Division launched a fierce attack on Hengyang from the west, southwest, northwest and south of the city.
Under the command of Fang Xianqie, the defenders at Tingbing Mountain and Gaoling outside Hengyang City repeatedly repelled the Japanese attacks, causing them huge casualties, but in the end they were outnumbered and all died heroically.
The 68th Division also took advantage of the situation to capture the positions south of the Hunan-Guangxi Railway. The division commander, Lieutenant General Sakuma Hitoshi, was in a very good mood. After all, although the 34th Division crossed the Xiangjiang River a day earlier than them, it was his 68th Division that captured the important positions in the end.
"Yoshi, the 68th Division is invincible!"