noffsinger Chapter 804 Airdrop Chicken Feather
Chapter 804 Airdrop Chicken Feather
Wang Meng and Li Yunlong stood in front of the map in a daze. Anhui was now basically controlled by the Eighth Route Army and the New Fourth Army, and the independent column's sphere of influence to the south had extended to Zhumadian.
Therefore, once the independent column can legitimately move south, it can reach Zhumadian by rail, and then 120 kilometers south is Xinyang controlled by the Japanese, and further down is Hankou!
"Old Li, although it's an order from the Military Commission, there shouldn't be any problem for us to move to Zhumadian, right?"
"Yes, I think so too. Although the large area between Zhumadian and Xinyang is under the control of the Central Military District, we are not entering. Even if Chang Guangzhou has wider jurisdiction, it can't reach us."
Wang Meng and Li Yunlong smiled at each other, as if they had reached a tacit understanding. The Fourth Army immediately assembled in Zhumadian and hid in the mountains and forests. The Fifth Army passed through Anhui and assembled in Huaining in southern Anhui.
After giving the order, the two men breathed a sigh of relief and watched the battle situation change quietly.
Yokoyama Isamu came well prepared. In order to restrain Xue Yue's "Tianlu Tactics", he not only assembled superior forces, but also adopted the tactics of "two-wing pincer attack and wave-like advancement".
兵力部署上，分别集结了第13师团、第39师团、第四十师团，从长沙西北的常德、益阳进攻；而在长沙东部的宜春、新余一线同样集结了第3师团、第58师团、第17旅团。
The two heavy troop groups deployed in a wave-like manner, advancing steadily and continuously clearing out the various strongholds of the Ninth War Zone. The fighting lasted until March 3. In just six days, they had captured Yiyang north of Changsha and Zhuzhou southeast of Changsha.
With only less than 10,000 casualties, five divisions and one brigade arrived at the outskirts of Changsha and were about to launch a general attack from three sides.
With the help of the Japanese minesweepers, the mines laid by the Ninth War Zone in the Xiangjiang River were completely cleared, and four warships also arrived at the city of Changsha.
On the eve of Changsha being besieged, Xue Yue was not in a hurry. On the contrary, he believed that the fourth Changsha victory had already arrived, so he set up a command post on Yuelu Mountain, a high ground in Changsha city, and made bold statements to the defenders and the common people in Changsha city:
I swear to live and die with Changsha.
At this time, Xue Yue did not realize that his Tianlu tactics had become ineffective, because the Central Army in various strongholds, in order to gain merit, exaggerated their achievements while retreating. By the time Xue Yue counted the results, more than 50,000 Japanese devils had been "eliminated".
Changsha has an absolute advantage in military strength, and if a decisive battle is launched here, victory in the fourth Changsha Defense War can be achieved.
However, after Changsha was surrounded, Xue Yue discovered that the truth of the matter was not as optimistic as the battle reports in his hands. Although the Central Army suffered heavy losses, it failed to hurt the Japanese, and their main force suffered minimal losses.
Xue Yue was so angry that he kept cursing at the command post on Yuelu Mountain, but he was powerless to change the situation. He could only quietly withdraw from Changsha and move the headquarters of the Ninth War Zone to Zhuting in the south of Changsha.
When Xue Yue left, I don’t know whether he wanted to continue to take overall command himself or he forgot, and he did not even designate the supreme commander in Changsha City.
As a result, Zhao Zili, acting chief of staff of the Ninth War Zone, Zhang Deneng, commander of the 4th Army, and Wang Ruoqing, commander of the artillery, refused to give in to each other and each did his own thing, becoming a mess.
On the morning of March 3, the Japanese planes flew to Yuelu Mountain and carried out indiscriminate bombing on the headquarters and barracks.
Zhao Zili started cursing.
"Damn it, where is our air force? Even if one plane is lost every hour, more than 190 planes can last for eight days!"
"Chief of Staff, our air force has long been shot down by the Japanese. Dozens of planes are lost in every air battle!"
Zhao Zili looked at the city of Changsha at the foot of Yuelu Mountain, and a feeling of sadness welled up in his heart. Without air superiority, the Japanese planes could drop bombs on their heads at will.
Although many houses in the city were demolished to build fortifications, which provided a certain degree of protection against the Japanese aerial bombs, if they really fell on top of their heads, even if the fortifications were not seriously damaged, the people inside would be shaken to death!
"Send a telegram to Commander Xue, requesting that we continue to send more air force to ensure that the Japanese planes do not appear over Changsha, otherwise Changsha will be in danger!"
Xue Yue was also in a state of panic at this moment, because due to misjudgment, the Tianlu tactic had become ineffective, and nearly 100,000 soldiers were at the gates of the city!
"Send a telegram to the Military Committee, requesting air support! In addition, although all the soldiers of the Ninth Theater are determined to die, the difference in strength between the enemy and us is huge. In order to defend our territory, please ask the committee to coordinate with the living forces of other theaters to quickly reinforce us!"
Before the telegram was sent, the Japanese began to attack Changsha from the east and west directions.
Among them, the 39th Division and the 40th Division that broke in from Changde Yiyang attacked Yuelu Mountain, and the 13th Division served as a reserve; the 3rd Division that broke in from Yichun Xinyu to the east of Changsha City attacked Changsha City, and the 58th Division and the 17th Brigade moved north to clear the central northeast of Changsha from behind.
Densely packed Japanese troops launched a sudden attack on Yuelu Mountain and Changsha city, but were quickly beaten back by the artillery from Yuelu Mountain and the heavy artillery in Changsha city. After a day's attack, there was no result.
When it was dark, the Chief of Staff of the Ninth War Zone and the Commander of the 4th Army simultaneously sent a telegram to Xue Yue: the enemy's multiple attacks have been smashed and countless enemies have been annihilated.
Xue Yue was overjoyed when he heard the news and immediately reported the good news to Chongqing. As a result, Chang Guangzhou was overwhelmed by the victory in his official residence.
"Very good. Who said that my Central Army can't fight? Facing an enemy with several times more troops than our own, we not only did not retreat, but were able to defend Changsha and repel the enemy's attack. I think this is the combat effectiveness of the Central Army!
Commend immediately, and personally airdrop the commendation order to Yuelu Mountain and Changsha City!"
In the middle of the night, at the request of the Air Force, a fire broke out in Changsha City to provide airdrop coordinates to the adventurous Air Force planes.
A dozen wooden boxes with white umbrellas flying around them landed in Changsha City. Soldiers from the Fourth Army in the city swarmed over to taste the canned food that had been airdropped.
But when I opened it, I was stunned. It was all newspapers, including a commendation.
"What the hell, airdropping is useless! Airdropping a can of cigarettes is better than this. This tattered newspaper and commendation order are too uncomfortable even if you use it to wipe your butt!"
"Haha, if you can poop, then you'd better be lucky. Wait for a few days without water or food. What will you poop? You'll poop a bunch of shit!"
The soldier became angrier and angrier and threw the bundles of newspapers into the fire.
"Fuck, put out the fire quickly. Don't let the damn Japs see it later. I'll fire a cannonball at you then!"
"Don't be afraid of anything. If a person dies, the birds will fly to the sky. If he doesn't die, he will live forever!"
Although it was hard to say, the soldiers still put out the fire honestly.