Age of Rebirth

At the beginning of August 190, although the weather was still hot during the day, the autumn wind was blowing on Honshu Island at night. The slightly chilly autumn wind was mixed with the salty taste of the sea breeze, diluting the months-long gunpowder smoke The Japanese ended two key battles on Honshu Island with a loss of more than [-] million troops, and also lost the capital to compete with the independent division.

The soldiers of the Independent Division, which had been resting on the battlefield for three days, recovered their physical strength, became vigorous again, and replenished a large amount of ammunition and supplies. Except for Ma Chaoyang, the commander of the Southeast Mobile Corps, who commanded ten brigades and continued to stay Outside Kyushu Island, the remaining seven main corps, with a total strength of more than 280 million troops, encircled Tokyo from the east and west ends according to the order of the division commander Tang Qiuli.

At this time, the temporary designations of the left and right wings of the Independent Division and the central and southern offensive groups have been revoked, and changed to the west, north, east, and south four-way combat headquarters. Tie's Marine Corps and the remaining troops of the Southeast Mobile Corps, with Feng Jiwu as the commander and Han Tie as the deputy commander, moved eastward quickly from the Kyoto and Kobe lines, and arrived at the Yokohama line to stand by.

The North Road Combat Command is mainly composed of Tang Qiusheng's Sulu Mobile Corps, Jingzhanqi's No.20 Ninth Corps, and the remaining troops in the East Finger. The deputy division commander Tang Qiusheng is also the commander, and Jingjingzhanqi is the deputy commander. , advancing eastward from the current battlefield in the northwest of Honshu Island, approaching the outskirts of Kofu to stand by.

The East Road Combat Command is mainly composed of directly subordinate corps, Sun Zhenbang's Outer Mongolia Field Corps, and Yuan Jinghao's North China Field Corps, with division commander Tang Qiuli concurrently serving as commander.Sun Zhenbang and Yuan Jinghao served as deputy commanders respectively, and immediately marched westward.Approaching the periphery of Urawa on standby, at the same time.Approach the periphery of Chiba with some troops.

The Southern Front Combat Command is based on the Southern Fleet commanded by Naval Fleet Commander Tang Qiuquan. Its main task is to blockade the Gulf of Tokyo and the southern seas of Japan. In this way, the independent army, sea and air forces will encircle Tokyo from land to sea. The water is blocked, forming a three-dimensional encirclement of Tokyo, the capital of Japan, in four directions.

at the same time.Le Yiqin's Southern Flying Group and Liu Cuigang's Northern Flying Group also transferred a large number of combat aircraft to field airports in Honshu in accordance with the orders of the division. At this time, the Japanese had few combat aircraft. You can fly into the air to fight.

At the command of the division commander, more than two million troops rushed towards Tokyo from all directions.The air fleet is roaring, the ground tanks and self-propelled artillery, artillery vehicles and trucks are like dragons, and the wheels are rolling.Rolling up the dust all over the sky, with soaring murderous aura, he killed all the way to Tokyo.The final battle to attack the Japanese mainland is about to begin.

Mid-August.Each corps of the Independent Division arrived at the designated position, first with a fierce attack.The Japanese strongholds on the outskirts of Yokohama, Kofu, Urawa and other places were cleared, and with superior forces, they captured Chiba, Kisarazu, Yokosuka and other places, forming a tighter siege on the Japanese capital Tokyo.

At this moment, Yokohama, Kofu, and Urawa, the defensive fulcrums outside Tokyo, have become isolated strongholds. As long as they wish, the independent division can easily take the above three places within a few hours, and then start to attack the suburbs of Tokyo.

For the sake of the war, both Emperor Hirohito and the ordinary citizens of Tokyo knew very well that the Empire of Japan would undoubtedly be defeated, and that the city of Tokyo would be destroyed sooner or later. The atmosphere of failure and fear permeated the sky over Tokyo. The millions of Japanese in Tokyo and its surrounding areas, including 10,000+ troops, are in panic all day long, counting their days on their fingers.

On August [-]th, Emperor Hirohito of Japan made a radio broadcast to all the citizens of Tokyo and soldiers of the Imperial Army, “Needless to say, I declare with a very heavy heart that all soldiers and subjects of the Great Japanese Empire, the Chinese Army has set foot on the The mainland of the empire has surrounded Tokyo, and the empire is at stake!"

"However, in this critical moment, as soldiers and subjects of the empire, we must have the determination and will to fight to the end, and the courage of the whole people. Even if the capital of the empire falls, we should take up our weapons and fight bloody battles with the invaders' Chinese army in the end!"

"Together with all the soldiers and subjects of the empire, I will stick to Tokyo until the last moment and fight to the last moment! I will also shed the last drop of blood for the Great Japanese Empire. Yes, Tokyo in ruins and unyielding corpses! Long live the Empire of Japan!"

"It's all at the end of the ropes, and Yuren is still bewitching people. I really don't know how to live or die! Quack!" Tang Qiuli turned off the radio, and said with a strong sarcasm at the corner of his mouth: "Yuhe, order the North, East, and West three The Road Combat Headquarters will attack Yokohama, Kofu and Urawa at [-]:[-] am tomorrow, seize the above three places, give Hirohito a loud slap in the face, and shut up this bastard!"

In the early morning of August [-]th, it was awakened by the artillery fire all over the sky. The three-way offensive troops of the Independent Division concentrated tens of thousands of artillery pieces of various calibers, thousands of tanks and thousands of combat aircraft. , with ferocious ground-to-air firepower, launched an attack on Yokohama, Kofu and Urawa.

The sky was still in the dark, and the roaring shells, dragging orange-red tail flames, pierced the air and lit up the sky. The sound of the explosion echoed in the air, the earth trembled, and the flames shot up to the sky, reflecting the bombs falling from the sky, turning The attack target was submerged in a sea of ​​flames!

Yokohama, the seat of Japan's Home Defense Command. For days, the commander Prince Zai-in, who had been sleepless all night, was awakened by the earth-shattering explosion as soon as he lay down. Through thick curtains, he could see With the flames soaring into the sky, he knew that the China Independent Division had begun to attack Yokohama, so Kofu and Urawa should also be attacked. He was eager to understand the situation in the two places.

Prince Zairen hurriedly put on his military uniform, and under the protection of the guards, braved the conflicting artillery fire and ran to the underground headquarters in a hesitant manner. He had just run into the dark and damp underground headquarters. , ran towards him, panting: "Deputy Commander-in-Chief, just received a telegram from the Kofu and Urawa garrison commanders that the China Independent Division launched a fierce attack by means of shelling and air bombing!"

"Connect me to Kofu and Urawa immediately!" Prince Zairen said with a livid face, while holding onto the wall of the basement to avoid falling.

Chief of Staff Yamaguchi looked distressed, and said: "Deputy Commander-in-Chief, the wired telephones leading to the two places have all failed, and the radio station is still open!"

The underground headquarters kept shaking amid the violent explosion, as if it would collapse at any moment, Prince Zairen sighed secretly, and said, "Yamaguchi-san, according to your judgment, can Yokohama, Kofu and Urawa be held? I want to hear the truth!"

"Deputy Commander-in-Chief, you can't hold it!" Lieutenant General Yamaguchi's face was blue and white, and he said: "The battle situation is obvious. The imperial army is far inferior to China's independent army in terms of strength, heavy equipment, and air force. Division troops, listen to the intensity of the artillery fire, there are at least [-] artillery pieces shelling Yokohama, I believe that the shelling of Kofu and Urawa will not be lower than Yokohama!"

"The Ministry has taken the liberty to make a suggestion. Please consider it, Deputy Commander-in-Chief. The total force of the Empire guarding Tokyo is only 48. If all of them are devoted to the defense of Yokohama, Kofu and Urawa, it will not prevent the independence of China. How long does it take for the division to survive, but it will be completely lost, and Tokyo will face a situation where there are no soldiers to defend!"

"Yamaguchi-san, you don't need to say anything!" Prince Zairen's eyes were dimly lit, and he said, "Convey my order. After the shelling and bombing of the China Independent Division troops stop, the three places of Yokohama, Kofu and Urawa will be sent to the police station." Troops, immediately withdraw to downtown Tokyo to deploy defenses, and the headquarters of the home defense area also withdraws from Yokohama at the same time and transfers to Tokyo!"

At 10 o'clock in the morning, the two hours of shelling and bombing by the Independent Division turned Yokohama, Kofu and Urawa into ruins. At [-]:[-], under the cover of thousands of tanks, the infantry The attack began, and without much effort, they invaded the rubble-strewn city. Except for the Japanese civilians who survived the artillery fire, the corpses of Japanese soldiers were rarely seen.

At [-] o'clock in the morning, the battle was over, and the troops of the independent division had all occupied Yokohama, Kofu, and Urawa, but they hadn't killed many little devils, which made the commanders at all levels feel very uncomfortable. The commander of the three-way offensive force personally I went to the scene to observe and came to a basically consistent conclusion. After the shelling and bombing stopped, the Japanese army gave up defending the city and withdrew to downtown Tokyo. The situation they got was quickly fed back to the division commander.

"The golden cicada has escaped its shell, or has to give up, Zai Ren is still wise!" Tang Qiuli said with a sneer: "Yuhe, order the attacking troops to stop the attack, and immediately start cleaning up the battlefield, and wipe out all the living Japanese. Escort all of them to the rear!"

"Master, after successfully capturing the target, the morale of the troops is high, and they can attack Tokyo with all their might, but why did you stop attacking?" Zhao Yuhe was very puzzled, and asked his own question, which is unreasonable. How can there be no reason for sudden insignificance?

Tang Qiuli smiled, and explained: "Keep the posture of the soldiers pressing down on the border, and give Hirohito time to think. If the Japanese surrender and win Tokyo without a fight, that's what I'd like to see. We spent more than four hours. Then they captured the three defensive fulcrums on the outskirts of Tokyo, brothers Yuren and Zairen should know the weight of them! Tokyo, how long can you defend?"

"Tokyo is already in the bag, and it's ripe. Wouldn't it be better for the soldiers to pay less sacrifice? The last gust of wind, it is better for the Japanese to do it themselves, and it also saves the cost of post-war reconstruction. It can be fought in other parts of Japan. Being vicious, besieging and not attacking Tokyo is also one of the strategies for attacking the Japanese mainland, and we have plenty of time to spend it!"

Zhao Yuhe was thoughtful, his eyes gradually brightened, and he understood what the teacher said.

(to be continued) (to be continued...)