Chapter 86 Blowing off the flagpole in front of the camp

Lieutenant General Kazuyoshi Sakanishi, commander of the 20th Army of the Japanese Army, is about to confront Wang Yaowu.The command organization of the Japanese army can be assigned temporarily. The Twentieth Army was originally organized in the Northeast to prepare for war against the Soviet Union. It was just an empty organization. After arriving in Hengyang, it was assigned a large number of troops. The 116th Division and the 68th Division are now the main force under his command. After receiving the combat mission, Banxi began to prepare for the battle.The Japanese army used a one-in-fifty-thousandth map. In the Chinese army, only battalion commanders and above have such a map, and the Japanese army has a map above the squad leader.As far as the scale is concerned, 1/50,000 is already very accurate and detailed, but Banxi still felt that it was not enough. In order to correct and enrich the existing map, he specially sent spies to conduct field reconnaissance across the border between the two armies.

These spies cannot be filled by ordinary Japanese spies. They must have a certain commercial status, and they must have a certain social foundation in the areas north and west of Shaoyang. , to collect local military important topography data. Through reconnaissance, the Japanese army corrected some errors in the map.Even a small bridge, a small temple, and a small grove are marked on the corrected map, so that the Japanese army could easily identify, pass, and organize battles during the war. The intelligence team of the 116th Division of the Japanese Army stationed in Shaoyang also collected extensive information on the military and political activities of the Fourth Front Army through methods such as buying traitors. At the end of March, the intelligence team discovered that the villages west of Shaoyang near the main defenders' positions had been "emptied out", and the common people had entered the mountains one after another. Therefore, they judged that the Fourth Front Army had discovered the Japanese attack attempt.

The pre-war preparations were not interrupted by this. On March 30, Okamura arrived in Hengyang by plane to inspect the preparations for the 20th Army's attack on Zhijiang.It's okay if you don't look at it, but seeing it makes his heart feel cold. Unlike the rising momentum of the Chinese army, the Japanese army was on the decline at this time.The newly formed independent mixed brigades of the 20th Army were all short of weapons. The soldiers all used Hanyang-made or Chinese official rifles seized in the Battle of Hunan and Guangxi, and a considerable number of soldiers were seventeen-year-old boys who had just been conscripted from China. Soldiers lack combat experience.

Even the main force, such as the 116th Division, experienced a large reduction in personnel due to casualties and diseases during the "Operation No. 1", and some infantry squadrons had only about a hundred people.Although a large number of recruits have been recruited, because of the interruption of transportation, the troops often need to go to the countryside to raise the necessities of life by themselves.Looting food, oil and salt, live pigs, and vegetables has become their main business, and some people are still doing business. Under such circumstances, the training of recruits can only be at a half-stop.

The main force of the Japanese army has always been known for its powerful firepower.However, the Field Artillery Regiment belonging to the 116th Division has already vomited to the point of eating their money. There are all kinds of artillery models in the team. The field artillery that the Kamono Artillery Regiment should have. After the inspection, Okamura felt that the past was beyond his reach, and he also realized more deeply that the Sino-Japanese war has reached a critical moment.Sakanishi, who accompanied the inspection, was not so pessimistic. The Japanese general and Isamu Yokoyama, who had been transferred back to China, had a lot of similarities in character. They both liked to find fault with their superiors and higher-level agencies, and sometimes they even had no scruples. Cursing loudly—at that moment, the complacency and self-admiration shown by the two of them, not to mention the general appearance, even if they were enthroned on the throne, promoted to Buddha and immortal, they probably would not change it.

Both pickiness and aloofness require capital.Yokoyama is rebellious and unruly, but he is able to win battles, and Sakanishi also has a few words of age in his stomach. In terms of command experience, he is not inferior to Yokoyama. As early as the early days of the war of aggression against China, he served as the chief of staff under Doihara. The captain is promoted step by step by relying on military exploits. On the other hand, those independent mixed brigades that Okamura saw falling in price did not participate in the Zhijiang operation this time, and all the first-line field troops who followed the 116th Division, Banxi naturally had reason to believe that he could Better and better than Isamu Yokoyama.

On April 5, the Japanese Twentieth Army held a meeting in Hengyang, and Banxi issued an order to attack Zhijiang to all ministries.After the meeting, Lieutenant General Hishida Motoshiro, head of the 116th Division, returned to Shaoyang from Hengyang at night under the guard of a small team.On the way, he was suddenly attacked by guerrillas. The guard team was killed or injured. Only a few people escorted Lingtian and fled back to Shaoyang. As in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, a strong wind broke the flagpole in front of the battalion. For Banxi and the 20th Army, this is definitely not a good omen.It's just that the matter has come to this point, the person involved can only pretend not to know, and continue to pretend to be a bluff.

In terms of tactical arrangements, there is not much difference between Banxi and Yokoyama. They both follow the "anti-Tianfu warfare" model, that is, the two wings are thickened and the middle is prominent. The focus of the attack is undertaken by the 116th Division. On April 11, the Iijima Advance Team organized by the 116th Division of the Japanese Army began its first secret westward march.Their task was to occupy the Xuefeng Mountain pass first before the battle officially started, and at the same time cause confusion for the defenders, thereby creating conditions for the Japanese follow-up troops to enter the mountain smoothly.

The members of the advance team were all selected elite soldiers, a total of 400 people, none of them brought any luggage or horses, and the infantry artillery, heavy machine guns, ammunition, and food fodder accompanying the team were carried by themselves. Due to tactical needs, the Japanese troops entered the battle at different times, but without exception, they all carried sufficient ammunition. Except for the advance team, the rest of the troops had to forcibly pull civilians to transport them along the way.At the same time, the rations brought by the Japanese army were not much, and the rations were completely dependent on local plunder.This shows that Banxi, like Yokoyama Isamu, is not too concerned about the safety of the rear contact line, and only wants to capture Zhijiang as soon as possible.