Chapter 76 more than enough energy

Hata Shunroku didn't think so.Originally, he believed that due to the Battle of Changde, many of the Chinese troops that were gathering in Yunnan had been restrained in the Changde battlefield, and that the Chinese expedition to Burma would not go smoothly. combat purpose. Hata Shunroku suddenly changed his mind because on November 25, Hsinchu, Taiwan was attacked by US aircraft stationed in China.Although China and the United States had sent planes to attack Japan before, they mainly played a role of propaganda and deterrence. This time the air strikes are not limited to propaganda, but have entered the actual level of strategic bombing.

Evidence shows that the United States may send a large number of B-29 heavy bombers known as "super sky fortresses" to Chengdu in the future, starting from western China, and directly attacking the Japanese mainland. This incident greatly stimulated the Japanese base camp.So the base camp gave way to the headquarters of the "China Expeditionary Force" in Nanjing to consider launching the "Operation to Open the Mainland". The staff officers in the Nanjing headquarters have wanted to fight a big battle for a long time, but they have never had the conditions. Now that they heard that the headquarters has this idea, everyone is very excited.On the contrary, Hata Shunroku was more calm and restrained. He told the chief of staff: "This is a major event that cannot be easily accepted, and full research must be carried out."

After the outbreak of the Pacific War, the "China Expeditionary Force" has been acting as a supply source for the Japanese army, and its troops have been continuously deployed to the Pacific battlefield.Long before the "Operation on the Continent", the headquarters of the "China Expeditionary Force" had secretly planned the "Operation Sichuan" (also known as "Operation No. 5"), which had to be suspended due to the unfavorable situation in the Pacific War. As the saying goes, small people come to wear thread, big people wear silk, so much money and material resources can accomplish so much.Hata Shunroku is very clear that under the current circumstances, in order to launch any super-large-scale battle, the necessary troops must be mobilized from the Northeast and the interior of Japan, otherwise there is absolutely no possibility of victory.

When Hata Junliu was thinking about it, he just received a telegram from the 11th Army to "completely occupy Changde".While sending a congratulatory message to Yuko Yokoyama, Hata Shunroku suddenly realized that the first task of "opening up the mainland" was to defeat Xue Yue's Ninth War Zone.In this process, the movement of the sixth theater is very important. If the sixth theater provides support from the side, it will undoubtedly have a negative impact on the attacking Japanese army. This involves a detail that absolutely cannot be ignored, that is, where is the starting point for "opening up the mainland"?Hata Shunroku's judgment is that it is ideal to launch operations from the vicinity of Changde.

According to Hata Junroku's instructions, the Chief of General Staff hastily sent a telegram to the Eleventh Army: "As for the timing of returning from Changde, we must temporarily stand by." For Yokoyama Isamu, this telegram from his superior was almost an idea to rub the living.Since the start of the Battle of Changde, the Eleventh Army of the Japanese Army has lost 10,000 troops, and there is only one supply line before and after it.In addition, the Chinese army on the outskirts of Changde is still under siege, and the Eleventh Army is in danger of being surrounded at any time.

Yokoyama Isamu's reply to Hata Shunroku was both negative and indifferent: due to limited military strength and other reasons, he lacked the confidence to ensure Changde.Let us return to the original station for the time being this time, and we will talk about it later if we want to come to Changde. After the simple answer, without waiting for Hata Shunroku and the base camp to discuss, Yokoyama Isamu put down the challenge on his own and ordered the ministries to withdraw northward according to the original plan. After the fall of Changde, the Chinese High Command repeatedly issued instructions to Sun Lianzhong and Xue Yue: "Regardless of whether the situation in Changde changes, we will besiege the enemy according to the established plan." The troops were ordered to act, but the Tenth Army suffered heavy losses in order to reinforce Changde. Obviously, everyone has more or less a psychological shadow, and few troops dare to encircle, detour, divide and intersperse boldly.Even Wang Yaowu's corps, which was the most active in action, had difficulty advancing due to the stubbornness of the enemy in front of it.

Until December 7th, a unit found out that the Japanese army was transporting vehicles frequently in Changde, with empty vehicles coming and heavy vehicles that were well covered.They concluded that Japanese troops were transporting casualties and loot, a sign of preparations to flee. After receiving the information, the Chief of the Sixth War Zone dispatched urgent telegrams to all armies, preparing for a pursuit battle.The next day, the Japanese army really began to retreat. On the outskirts of Changde, there is an east-west hill called Sun Mountain. The 3rd Battalion of the 169th Regiment of the 57th Division is stationed on the hill.After the main force of the division withdrew from the outskirts of the city, the third battalion still held on to Sun Mountain. Counting from November 22, it lasted for 16 days and nights.

Being able to persist for such a long time is firstly due to the favorable terrain.Although Sun Mountain is not high, it is still a high ground after all, and it is easy for the defenders to use their firepower. On the contrary, it is much more difficult for the Japanese army to shoot upwards or charge from the flat ground without barriers.Secondly, in the later period, the large Japanese army had shifted its focus to Changde City, and only a small army besieged Sun Mountain, and there was a small drinking pond nearby, so there would be no risk of water shortage.Even so, by the end of the war, a battalion that once had more than 500 men had dropped sharply to less than 50 men.

At midnight on December 8, the entire line suddenly fell silent.The battalion commander said to everyone: "It seems that the enemy has retreated. We should have attacked, but now we are lying on our stomachs, and we can't even stand firmly. We really have more energy than energy." After finishing speaking, he sighed deeply. On the morning of December 9, Yu Chengwan, who had been in contact with the 74th Army Headquarters and the 51st Division, led his troops into Changde City, and personally planted a brand new national flag on the Xiaoximen tower.Then he sent someone to notify the third battalion to withdraw from Sun Mountain and gather at the Catholic Church in Changde City.

It was the first time for the surviving officers and soldiers of the third battalion to face Changde after the catastrophe. The rest of the fifty-seventh division participating in the assembly was less than a thousand people.Yu Chengwan and infantry commander Zhou Yizhong spoke successively.When Zhou Yizhong said that there were 17,000 people in the whole division at the beginning of the battle (it was more than 8,000, which seems to be inaccurate), and now it is less than 5%, everyone cried.