The father of the sword is Kong Jie

After each meeting, all participating commanders returned to their posts one after another.

The deputy commander-in-chief and the deputy chief of general staff invited the senior leaders. The commander-in-chief and his party will not go back to Yan'an yet. Everyone is waiting for the progress of each front in the command room of the Huangyadong headquarters.

As soon as they entered the newly built command center at the headquarters of the Eighth Route Army, they saw that the brightly lit war room in the cave was surrounded by maps. There was also a giant sand table in the center. There was also a huge map on the command podium, and there were many communications systems around it. The room is divided into regions to receive information from each base area and each unit, just like a small market.

The deputy general staff officer introduced: "This sand table has targets and terrains marked in Hebei, Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Shandong, and Henan. When the war starts, the status of each unit will be changed as soon as possible, and the progress of each unit will be monitored in real time, and reinforcements will be coordinated. Help them better achieve their strategic goals.”

"This is the top-secret department of the Eighth Route Army headquarters. All communications staff are stationed there for a long time and are prohibited from leaving. They are not allowed in or out until Operation Autumn Wind is over."

"There are also several fake command centers, which are also heavily guarded and used to paralyze the Japanese army's judgment and ensure the safety of the command center."

On the other side, the Yan'an Industrial Production Center has been put into operation one after another, and a large amount of military supplies have been shipped eastward. In addition to the enthusiastic support of the people in the base area, it has also improved the economy of the Eighth Route Army in the past two years, increased the purchase price of grain and other materials, and also increased wages for workers, and won one victory after another. A related one.

Yan'an even gave preferential tax policies to ethnic entrepreneurs, allowing these enterprises that had production difficulties in Kuomintang-controlled areas to settle in Yan'an and participate in the large-scale production movement.

Materials filled with encouraging signatures from people in the base areas of Yan'an and Hetao areas were continuously transported to the frontline troops, and everyone was full of confidence.

At the same time, the Strategic Camouflage Bureau is not idle either. It is commanded by Shi Dahu, the number one master of strategic camouflage and deception, and uses multiple camouflage radio stations to put out various false information, which is enough to fool the little devils.

The deputy commander-in-chief also emphasized that although the Japanese troops are now dispersedly stationed, they still have a lot of mobile troops and will attack everywhere if there is any trouble.

At this time, the Japanese did not engage in tortoise tactics and were still actively fighting in the field. Small groups of troops dared to go on a rampage, and the Japanese who came to the door were beaten in vain.

In the future, the little devils will all retreat to their strongholds or go out in large groups, and it will not be so easy to fight!

After the start of this battle, whether to eat meat or drink soup depends entirely on the capabilities of each army.

In addition, after the main force was dispatched, the captured materials were immediately dispersed and transferred. The main force groups in the base areas along the way directly changed their equipment and temporarily joined the field clusters to run in while fighting, and then returned to the establishment after the phased operations were completed.

In order to give full play to the joint operations of various units in various base areas.

What strategic goals should we ultimately achieve?

"Fully integrate the troops, maximize the follow-up impact of victory in battles such as the May Day raids and even the air battle in Licheng, quickly open up and strengthen base areas in various places, further expand the combat strength of our Eighth Route Army behind enemy lines, and improve the long-term situation in the occupied areas in previous years. , suffered the hardships of the Japanese blockade.

The sudden launch of the autumn offensive further traumatized the Japanese army. After this battle, the Japanese army no longer had the strength to carry out large-scale raids on the Eighth Route Army base areas, thereby stabilizing the combat situation in North China and striving for further stability for the development of the anti-Japanese base areas. "

……

In Peiping, the headquarters of the Japanese North China Front, the newly appointed General Okabe has been having trouble sleeping these past few days.

It was originally the first thing that the new official wanted to do when he took office. He also wanted to compare his senior Okamura, who he had always regarded as his target, with an absolutely excellent record during his tenure.

Who can imagine.

I heard that Senior Okamura, who arrived on Guadalcanal, had the highlight of his military career, and was defeating the landing forces of all parties, mainly the US military, in the jungle of Guadalcanal!
Okabe, who had just taken office, had not yet had time to fully establish himself in North China.

The eight-pronged autumn offensive immediately followed.

Before this, Okabe had never heard that these Eighth Route Army troops, who were struggling to survive in the occupied areas of the Japanese Empire, had such courage, courage and ability to take the initiative to launch an offensive into the imperial occupied areas!
Simply rampant.

You must know that for so many years, the Eighth Route Army has been passively defensive, hiding in that desolate mountainous area, and suffered brutal raids by Japanese troops time and time again.

Okabe is increasingly puzzled by how strong the Eighth Route Army is today.

However, he did not expect that the Eighth Route Army not only launched an offensive, but also a large-scale offensive that swept across North China and even affected the Central China Theater.

When this sudden autumn offensive started out as a partial attack, and then turned into a raging fire, and even the battle that started at the beginning went straight to Huanglong, and went straight to Taiyuan City, the base camp of the Japanese First Army in Shanxi, Oka The department was a little confused.

He originally thought that the Eighth Route Army was bluffing again, this was their usual tactic.

Even Yoshio Iwamatsu, commander of the Japanese First Army in Shanxi who was stationed in Taiyuan City, didn't think much about it at first.

After all, during the May Day raids not long ago, five cities including Licheng and Xiangyuan were captured by the Eighth Route Army, and the 120th Division suddenly besieged Taiyuan City. Yoshio Iwasatsu was indeed frightened at that time.

Since then, Iwamatsu Yoshio has especially strengthened the defense of Taiyuan City. He has strengthened vigilance and deployed additional troops in all directions of the east, west, north and south of the city.

In addition, troops stationed nearby can provide reinforcements at any time to ensure the safety of Taiyuan City.

This time the Eighth Route Army's autumn offensive was launched. After the news of the rapid advance of various troops towards Taiyuan was detected by the Japanese army, Iwamatsu Yoshio initially thought that the Eighth Route Army was trying to scare people again. It was amazing that some fortifications outside the city were destroyed and supplies were looted. .

So I didn't particularly care at first.

Until the Eighth Route Army's movements became louder and louder, the Japanese army then received news that various units of the Eighth Route Army were pressing forward step by step in the direction of Taiyuan.

Then, offensive and defensive battles began in almost all directions around the east, west, south, and north of Taiyuan City.

After the Eighth Route Army's autumn offensive was officially launched, the city of Taiyuan was besieged at the beginning of the war. This was the beginning of an explosive battle that triggered the entire North China.

It was only then that Yoshio Iwamatsu and the old Japanese soldier Okabe suddenly woke up.

——Balu is serious this time!
Yoshio Iwamatsu, who had just woken up from a dream, suddenly thought that during the May Day raids, the Eighth Route Army, led by the 120th Division, was besieging Taiyuan City. If it had not been for the timely arrival of reinforcements from all parties, the Eighth Route Army's fake show might not have been real. If you do it, you will really conquer Taiyuan in one fell swoop.

Could it be that the Eighth Route Army had figured out the way and was determined to capture Taiyuan this time?

As the base camp of the Japanese First Army in Shanxi, it was also the headquarters of his First Army Commander Yoshio Iwamatsu. If Taiyuan was captured by the Eighth Route Army, it would be a complete loss of face for the First Army.

Think about it, when Yoshio Shinozuka was the commander of the First Army, he was still able to maintain stable public order in the Shanxi occupied area and firmly control Taiyuan.

If this Taiyuan was lost in his hands, Iwamatsu Yoshio, he would become a sinner.

Thinking of this, Yoshio Iwamatsu was completely panicked. As a loyal supporter of the newly appointed commander-in-chief of the North China Front, Okabe, he immediately chose to ask for help from Naosaburo Okabe.

Okabe did not dare to delay. Judging from the intelligence collected by the Japanese army in the past few days, as well as the military map presented in front of him, the situation of various units of the Eighth Route Army was very different.

The center of gravity of the sudden counterattack launched by the Eighth Route Army seems to be around Taiyuan.He felt the enemy's courage and ambition from the movements of the Eighth Route Army.

As the base camp of the First Army in Shanxi, and also for the North China Front Army, Taiyuan City has extremely high military value, political significance, and strategic significance that cannot be lost.

Once the Eighth Route Army is allowed to capture Taiyuan, it will be a devastating blow to the Japanese army in North China.

As Kong Jie said at the combat meeting, attacking Taiyuan means blindfolding the Japanese. If the Japanese are even blindfolded, they will be disoriented and unable to do anything.

Because of this, when the Eighth Route Army revealed this intention during its massive military advance.

Even if the Japanese army had doubts, they would not dare to gamble.

Does the old Japanese Okabe dare to say - "The Eighth Route Army's move is just a bluff, they simply don't have the guts to attack Taiyuan"?

No, he dare not.

Not to mention little devils, at the combat meeting held by the headquarters to focus on the siege of Taiyuan, if it were not for the final combat plan, most of the regiment and brigade commanders who participated in the meeting would have really thought that Taiyuan was going to be attacked. Well, everyone is very excited.

Even the frontline military cadres of the Eighth Route Army thought so. In addition, the first stage of the Eighth Route Army's offensive directly set out to capture Taiyuan.

The little devil couldn't help but believe it.

How could the Japanese understand the true essence of "encircling the cities with the countryside and finally seizing power across the country"?

As a result, the Japanese troops in North China, who were afraid of losing Taiyuan, quickly took action. The reinforcements that should be sent towards Taiyuan City and the Eighth Route Army troops advancing towards Taiyuan should be intercepted along the way.

In this way, they were quickly mobilized by the Eighth Route Army's offensive.

Almost at the same stage.

Kong Jie, who temporarily acted as the commander-in-chief of the Eighth Route Army Aviation Headquarters, issued combat orders for various aviation bases to raid Japanese military airports such as Datong, Taiyuan, Zhangjiakou, Baoding, and Jinan.

After launching this autumn offensive with targeted strikes, the Japanese army can quickly invest various flying forces in North China.

Cover various infantry operations.

As time went on, the situation intensified.

In the eyes of the Japanese army, the Eighth Route Army headed straight for Taiyuan City, and the battle that should have centered around Taiyuan actually expanded rapidly in a short period of time.

When the Japanese army passively reinforced Taiyuan from all directions in order to defend Taiyuan, the reinforcements were soon attacked by the Eighth Route Army's blocking troops halfway.

The Japanese army originally thought that this was a reinforcement force arranged in advance by the Eighth Route Army, which was determined to capture Taiyuan.

This is the consistent combat style of the Eighth Route Army.

There must be reinforcements and blocking troops to attack the enemy.

It was not until the defenders from the stable county-occupied areas surrounding Taiyuan were gradually mobilized to advance reinforcements to Taiyuan.

Only then did the Eighth Route Army's earth-shattering follow-up battle plan finally come to light.

On the [-]th, the armed forces of the Eighth Route Army, dominated by the Jinan Military Region, quickly besieged Liaocheng and Dezhou, the firmly occupied areas of the Japanese army, and started a confrontation with the garrison of Tanaka and Lin Fangtaro.

In the afternoon of that day, the armed forces of the Eighth Route Army, mainly composed of the Central Hebei Military Region, suddenly launched a fierce attack on the enemy war zones of Baoding, Jidong, and Xingtai.

At almost the same time, various units of the Eighth Route Army seemed to have made an appointment. The Eighth Route Army in the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei base area also quickly attacked in the direction of Baoding, and launched field battles with the Japanese reinforcements in the direction of Beiping, Tianjin, and Zhangjiakou along the way.

The Eighth Route Army troops in the northern Henan base area also quickly attacked in the direction of PY, an important Japanese occupied area.

Then, various field units of the Eighth Route Army in the Taihang Base Area were dispatched one after another, including the Taiyue Military Region and even the Anti-Japanese Armed Forces of the Eighth Route Army in the Zhongtiao Mountain Base Area.

Even the 35th Route Army in the Hetao area caught the local Mongolian troops by surprise without even saying hello.

Go straight to Datong, the base camp of the Mongolian Army!In addition, they divided their forces to raid the Baotou area.

... As the situation changed drastically, on the military simulation sand table placed in front of the old Japanese Okabe, more and more areas were quickly and passively put into combat. Soon, like falling raindrops, the entire North China was turned into a A pot of messy porridge.

"Taiyuan, Datong, Baoding, Zhangjiakou, northern Henan, eastern Henan, western Shandong, central Shandong, and eastern Hebei... are in chaos, completely in chaos, general, are these Eighth Route Army crazy? They are trying their best. Are you going to start a final decisive battle with our army?"

There were firefights everywhere.

There are wars everywhere.

The flames of war enveloped almost the entire North China area.

The evolution of the situation greatly exceeded the Japanese army's expectations.

The old Japanese Okabe couldn't figure out how this battle, which was originally centered on Taiyuan, could spread to the entire North China like a fire spreading in all directions in less than three days.
At this time, the Japanese army fell into complete passivity.

Almost all the Japanese army's previous combat deployments were designed around how to defend Taiyuan City and force back the Eighth Route Army that attacked the Taiyuan area.

In order to stabilize Taiyuan's defense, a lot of garrison troops from major counties around Taiyuan were deployed, which greatly weakened the original defensive strength.

At this juncture, the Eighth Route Army quickly launched an almost erratic and completely crazy attack on the major hub counties and important occupied areas of the Japanese army.

The flaws in other defensive areas caused by the Japanese army to reinforce Taiyuan were quickly found and broken through by the Eighth Route Army.

As the commander-in-chief, Naosaburo Okabe had no choice but to adjust his combat deployment in a hurry to cope with the Eighth Route Army's offensive.

Urgent!
There's a panic everywhere!
The Japanese military headquarters was not even sure which one should reinforce which one. In one day, there were more calls to the headquarters than in the previous year. General Okabe’s head almost exploded...

(End of this chapter)