The softest part of the Japanese army is the transportation line, and the transportation line is also the lifeblood of the Japanese army. Rapid maneuvering and building fortresses are all based on the transportation line.

In order to deal with the threat of anti-Japanese armed forces behind enemy lines, the Japanese army was still desperately building roads, but it was no longer an ordinary road. It is easy to understand and accurate to call it the "steel blockade line".

This kind of road is "five feet higher than the ground, with ditches on both sides eight to one meter deep, six feet wide in the inner bottom, and one meter six feet wide in the ditch surface". In fact, it is to use the concept of modern geometry to describe it, a large trench like a trapezoid was dug next to the road. The Japanese army built a bunker not far from each other on this road, and it was like a beacon tower that appeared not far from the ancient Great Wall.

The Baijin and Lin (Fen) and Handan (Dan) railways divided Taihang and Taiyue areas; the Japanese army expanded eastward based on Pinghan Road, repaired the main lines of Shijiazhuang to Nangong, Neiqiu to Julu, Xingtai to Weixian, Handan to Daming, and divided the Hebei-south base areas; on the west side of the Pinghan Line, they actively built strongholds and highways to block the transportation between Taihang and southern Hebei; in addition, the Longhai Railway is under construction, the Cangshi Railway is under construction, and the Jinan Railway is under construction through Daming to Handan is also under construction...

At the same time, the Japanese army strengthened the protection of railway and highway trunk lines. In particular, the Zhengtai Line was not only a strategic transportation route connecting Shanxi and Hebei provinces, but also a barrier between the Shanxi-Cha-Hebei base and the Shanxi-Hebei base. The Japanese army deployed three independent mixed brigades with heavy troops.

Faced with the Japanese army's "weaving net" tactics and the situation where the base areas would be divided by railways and highways, the Eighth Route Army of North China felt heavy pressure and launched several counterattacks.

The Bai-Jin Railway was broken and attacked, the Pinghan Road was broken and attacked, the Zhengtai Road was broken and attacked, the Daoqing Road was broken and attacked, and the Tongpu Road was broken and attacked... Faced with the Japanese army's reliance on railways and highways to fight against the division and encroachment of Japanese bases, the struggle between the Eighth Route Army and the Japanese army on the transportation line became increasingly fierce and complex.

Tada Jun works better than his ex, and he does do better than his ex. But he also has his troubles, that is, the importance of North China is not completely recognized by the Chinese dispatched forces.

Just when Tada Jun asked to strengthen the military force in North China to completely change the situation in North China, the Chinese dispatched troops not only did not meet his requirements, but instead asked the North China Front Army to send some troops to support the battle in Central China, and at the same time sent some troops to carry out vehicle production warfare.

Obviously, the Chinese dispatched troops and the North China Front Army had great differences of opinion on combat thoughts, especially on political strategies, mainly because they lacked understanding of the development and strength of armed forces behind enemy lines such as the Eighth Route Army.

To sum up, the Japanese army's military attack on eastern Henan was delayed. After all, after several battles, the strength of the Third Column (New Seventh Army) cannot be underestimated. The weapons, equipment and military qualities are much higher than those of the Eighth Route Army. It is difficult to win the brigade-level and even brigade-level sweeping and clearing. To dispatch more troops to attack, it takes longer to prepare and plan.

For the New Seventh Army, which had been exhausted for a long battle, this was undoubtedly a good opportunity to recover. Yang Tianfeng breathed a sigh of relief based on the information of all parties. But he also realized that the Japanese army's net weaving and road construction was not retreating and defense, but creating important strategic conditions for the offense. The revenge after full preparation will be more fierce and heavy.

"The enemy's chance of attacking after the winter is very high. Although we may have increased the rest and recovery time for more than a month, the enemy's attack will be unprecedentedly powerful." Yang Tianfeng's memory shows that the Japanese army only drew two divisions from central China to reinforce North China after the Hundred Regiments War, but because of his own sudden appearance, it is not ruled out that there will be major changes in history.

"A division?" Chief of Staff Liang Moqing was not surprised by the voice coming from the phone. "It is unlikely that the standing division or the B division? The C division is the first division, and when we complete the expansion, we should be able to withstand the first cavalry division, the 14th cavalry brigade, and other friendly troops."

At the end of 1938, the Japanese army began to reorganize its troops, that is, a large number of newly formed independent brigades and Class C reserve divisions were opened to China, and they replaced defenses with the standing divisions and Type B reserve (special) divisions that were originally put into the battlefield. The troops that were replaced may be driven back to the country to release mobilization, or transferred to the Kwantung Army to fight against the Russian threat.

Although they are all called divisions, their strengths are very different. The permanent division is a standing army of the Japanese army, organized into a four-unit system, also known as the A-type division, with a total force of more than 28,000, as well as heavy weapons and equipment such as 16 mountain cannons and 36 field cannons. They are combat units with strong combat power with multiple armies. The C-type division is expanded by a mixed brigade, with a force of about 15,000, and the artillery has also been greatly reduced.

Among the Japanese troops in North China, there is also the Dance Division, which is also expanded by a mixed brigade, with only three infantry corpses. Other troops are only brigades or squadrons, and the force is only more than 11,000. However, due to its flexibility and flexibility, it is often used to sweep away enemy bases in North China.

According to the military expansion plan, the New Seventh Army will destroy Sun Dianying's troops, and recruit more than 30,000 troops, as well as reinforcements from the First Cavalry Division and the 14th Cavalry Brigade, as well as the National Army troops of western Henan and Anhui Province, and more than 40,000 people will deal with the 15,000 Japanese devils of the C Division. They will resist rather than defeat them. As long as the tactics are reasonable, they can still be achieved.

"Don't take it lightly, but more importantly, you must base yourself on yourself." Yang Tianfeng said in a pondering manner: "Expanding the army will expand another five or six thousand people. With the number, the eastern Henan plain is restored. There is no need to worry about food and salary for the time being. In this densely populated area, we must seize the opportunity. We must also hold on to the training and insist on the competition. In short, all methods that can improve combat power can be adopted, and the planned goals must be completed within two months."

During the phone call, Liang Moqing seemed to be thinking and then agreed, but put forward another suggestion, "Can the anti-Japanese armed forces north of Longhai Road increase support to reduce the pressure on our army?"

"We can only do this after our army has completed its expansion of equipment." Yang Tianfeng had already thought about it and said without thinking: "You can consider a small amount, but it will not be a free gift."

"I understand." Liang Moqing hesitated for a moment and said, "Whether to divide the activity areas with Longhai Road as the boundary, can we tentatively negotiate or make guarantees in verbal form."

"Just expressing the action is enough." Yang Tianfeng paused and said, "We should pay attention to the influence. Major events such as dividing the activity areas are not within our power, but it is decided by the war zone!"
Chapter completed!