In order to occupy Wuhan in one battle, the Japanese army also divided its troops to attack Wuhan in two groups. Among them, the 11th Japanese army, which was the main attacker, took Okamura Yasuji as the commander and led the troops of the five and a half divisions under his command to attack Wuhan along both sides of the Yangtze River.

The Second Army commanded by Minorhiko Higashimiya was actually responsible for assisting Wuhan along the northern foothills of the Dabie Mountains. But the commander Shinroku Hata, who was responsible for the command of the Wuhan battle, would not have thought that the Second Army would suffer a severe blow in the Dabie Mountains.

After receiving a telegram from the Second Army, he requested that the rear send troops to reinforce again. He also felt a little incredible, and the reason was that the losses of the Second Army exceeded his imagination.

If the 13th Division was hit hard, it was more likely that it was caught off guard by the attackers and made a little reckless mistake. Then the 10th Division was completely wiped out, which really shocked Setsuru.

But just two days after such a bad roar, the 16th Division, the main force of the Second Army, was once again surrounded by the Fifth War Zone troops. This sudden turn of action made Setsuru undoubtedly seem very dissatisfied.

Although the Second Army is not the main attacking force, the Second Army has a huge role. As long as they fight in the Dabie Mountains, they can restrain the Central Army's Fifth War Zone troops and prevent the Central Army from acting rashly.

But now, the Second Army, which was originally progressing smoothly, suddenly became weak and could be bullied, and one and a half divisions were lost on the battlefield. This was undoubtedly an unacceptable defeat for the Japanese army, whose troops were already insufficient.

If the 16th Division is lost to the battlefield, then the Second Army, composed of three and a half divisions, can basically be declared dead in name only. Even Shizuruo must start to worry that the troops in the Fifth War Zone will support the battle on the Wuhan front from the flanks.

In order to carry out this Wuhan battle, the Japanese base camp gathered the forces of the 14th division in central China. The forces of the Second Army and the 11th Army were the forces of the nine divisions in total in the Second Army and the 11th Army.

But in addition to the troops participating in the war on the front, in order to ensure the security tasks in Shanghai, Nanjing, Hangzhou and other regions, to consolidate the rear and ensure the smooth operation of this battle, other troops in Xi Junliu also have combat tasks.

One carrot and one pit, and the following is the telegram from the Second Army that requested to send reinforcements, Sei Junliu was undoubtedly very angry and troubled. If there were any mistakes in the 16th Division, then the Second Army would almost lose its ability to attack.

In this case, Shizuruo could only order Higashiramiya Minorhiko to do everything possible to rescue the 16th Division. As for reinforcements, it would take a long time to draw troops from the rear.

Facing the telegram sent by Hoshit-roku, Tokuru Miya Minorhiko said bitterly: "Rescue, now we have a lot of plans, there are only one division or so. How to send troops to rescue?"

The 13th Division sent out before actually had less than 20,000 combat troops. Many of them were recruits who were urgently replenished during the rest period. Even though they were still under the name of the division, they no longer had the combat effectiveness of the Class A Division.

It was precisely because he was severely injured on the south bank of Shihe that the 13th Division, which had just appointed a new division commander, continued on the journey without any time to rest. However, the 13th Division, which lost its heavy artillery, had undoubtedly greatly reduced its combat effectiveness.

The First Division, which was responsible for blocking them, was undoubtedly the elite troops under He Zhengdao. With the strength of a division, it was almost half-remnants of Japanese division. Even if it was head-on, I believe the First Division would not be afraid of anything.

If He Zhengdao had not emphasized that the enemy must be blocked at the lowest cost, Zhang Cheng would have thought about whether he would find a way to set up a trap and wipe out the half-disrupted Japanese division. In this way, the Japanese Second Army would be really disabled.

Regarding Tokuromiya Minorhiko's helplessness, the staff of the combat command also knew that the battle changed too quickly during this period. This speed even made them unable to make corresponding adjustments, and they felt that they were completely disrupted.

But many Japanese staff members knew that the Dabie Mountains war would become like this, and there was an inseparable reason for the New Sixty-Seventh Army, which led He Zhengdao to the south to participate in the war. If it weren't for this army, they wouldn't have been so passive.

He Zhengdao, who is good at special operations, is the most accustomed to using the combat method of "fast and ruthless". Taking advantage of the situation in the south that the Japanese army did not know much about the New Sixty-Seventh Army, he attacked and wiped out the 10th Japanese Division.

Taking advantage of the single loophole of communication in this era, He Zhengdao crossed the river to mobilize his troops to the rear of the Japanese army in the shortest time. When the Japanese army reacted, they had no time to react.

The 16th Division, which was fighting on the front line, was suddenly cut off with the troops that were preparing to follow up in the rear. This cutting tactic really hit the Japanese army seven inches. While jumping, he had to make a decision to retreat and preserve his strength.

The Japanese army, who had resumed radio contact with the 16th Division, learned that the troops in the Fifth War Zone had begun to encircle the 16th Division. They also knew that the situation of the 16th Division would become more dangerous in the future.

In this case, a staff officer suggested: "General, in terms of the current battlefield situation, it is very unfavorable for the 16th Division. If you continue to retreat, you are afraid that the situation will become worse.

I have a bold idea, can the 16th Division launch defensive operations on the spot? Although the 16th Division lost a lot of troops, their main force is still preserved, and the heavy artillery troops also suffer no losses.

The 13th Division's attack is not smooth at the moment, and it is more of a lack of favorable offensive weapons. The heavy artillery we mobilized from the rear should arrive tomorrow and the day after tomorrow. At that time, the heavy artillery troops can be directly sent to the front line to participate in the battle.

If there are heavy artillery troops to strengthen the attack, then let the air force cooperate in the air, and a chariot corps are drawn from the headquarters to strengthen the offensive capabilities of the 13th Division. Collect more livestock to clear mines, I believe the 13th Division will advance faster.

As long as the 16th Division can last for three days, the 13th Division, which has been supplemented with strength, should be able to break through the opponent's blockade within three days. At least from the information currently collected, there are not many blocking troops of the Eighth Route Army.

If the 16th Division was allowed to launch defensive operations on the spot, the supplies we had transported to the 16th Division should be sufficient for them to fight several large-scale wars. At the very least, we can also hold back the main force of the Chinese army in this direction."

After the staff's combat idea was expressed, many staff members felt their eyes lit up. But many staff members knew that once the 13th Division could not break through the Eighth Route Army's blockade as soon as possible, the 16th Division might be surrounded and annihilated.

At least they can believe that as long as the 16th Division makes up their minds to launch on-site defense, they should be able to hold on for at least three days with the materials and combat strength currently owned by the 16th Division.

Compared to being chased by troops from the Fifth War Zone when retreating, on-site defense seems to be a better choice. Moreover, such a combat method is equivalent to forcing the Fifth War Zone to fight the 16th Division.

If the 16th Division suffers heavy losses by then, I believe that it will definitely not be easy for the Fifth War Zone troops that intend to encircle and annihilate the 16th Division. This tactic of killing one thousand enemies and losing 800 on its own is very vicious!

What To Higashikuramiya Minorhiko was that at this moment, Fujie Etsuki, who learned that the road ahead was blocked again, seemed to realize that they could not walk fast at all with so many supplies on the road, and it was even more impossible for them to run past the Central Army that was chasing them.

Thinking of this, Fujie Keisuke, who had originally planned to break through the siege, heard the chief of staff of the division: "Secretary Commander, judging from the current situation, if we divide our troops to break through the siege, it is afraid that it will be difficult for us to break through the opponent's interception.

It can be seen from the fact that we captured the troops last night and were blocked by the Eighth Route Army's small troops that we were afraid there were many Eighth Route Army reconnaissance squads around us. It was difficult for us to escape their control with every move.

Even from the current situation, they may be hoping that we will divide our troops and break through. In that case, they will be able to concentrate their superior forces to defeat them. If that is the case, we will be in real danger."

Listening to the Chief of Staff’s analysis, Fujie Keifu also felt it made sense, and thought for a while and said, “What do you think you should do now?”

‘Defense on the spot, waiting for support!’

Speaking of the combat plan discussed by the division and team staff, Fujie Keisuke said without comment: "This combat plan can indeed play a certain role in changing our current adverse situation.

But we must consider that if reinforcements cannot arrive as soon as possible, our existing troops will not last long. Although we have sufficient supplies, our troops are not many, and we are afraid that we will not be able to withstand too many casualties."

‘General, our losses are no less. But I believe that our opponents will not be too relaxed. According to what we have learned before, there are actually not many elite troops in the fifth war zone that fights us.

Even if the Eighth Route Army that blocked our retreat now, they only sent one army unit. And one of the main divisions of this army is currently in the mall. This shows that they have not many troops in their hands.

Think about it again, they had sneaked into our 10th Division in the direction of Huaibin. Even if their combat effectiveness is indeed not to be underestimated, I believe that their battle to encircle and annihilate the 10th Division must have paid a considerable price.

If we stick to the waiting for assistance here, it will disrupt their combat plans. If they continue to block ahead, I believe that the 13th Division and the military headquarters will not let them get too much advantage.

The final victory of this combat plan depends on who can persist until the end. If we can severely damage our troops in the defensive counterattack, I believe it will be very beneficial for the entire Wuhan Battle.'

Saying this is undoubtedly a bet on the life of the remaining troops of the 16th Division. But in the view of the Japanese Chief of Staff, if they can severely damage the troops in the Fifth War Zone before their division is completely wiped out, they will relatively clear the obstacles for the troops coming from behind.
Chapter completed!