Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 418 Tiger Claws Out the Heart
After the Battle of Leize, the main force of the G army retreated to Diqiu and the area north of Leize to rest and reorganize.

Although the Kuomintang army transferred the 11th Division to northern Jiangsu, it also transferred several other reorganized divisions there.

In the Yincheng, Chaoge, and Diqiu areas, the 5th Army plus 8 reorganized divisions, totaling nearly 200,000 troops, were concentrated.

They were prepared to achieve a resounding victory to coincide with the convening of Chiang Kai-shek's National Assembly.

Of course, with so many troops mobilized, Chiang Kai-shek couldn't possibly focus his attention solely on the Kuomintang forces in southwestern Shandong.

His goal was to eliminate the main force of the Communist Party's army, capture Yecheng, the capital of the Communist Party's Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan Military Region, and then open up the Pinghan Railway.

The Chinese military naturally couldn't just stand by and watch Chiang Kai-shek's plans unfold.

"Commander, the second batch of supplies has arrived, and all regiments have been replenished with ammunition."

"The heavy mortar shells have also been replenished to half of the base quantity," Xu Wu reported as he entered the command post.

A standard load of 120mm mortars consists of 80 rounds, and half a load consists of 40 rounds.

It's not that the two can't be replenished with more shells, but rather that the transport capacity has reached its limit.

The previous two or three months of continuous fighting had not only exhausted the soldiers, but also caused considerable damage to the mules and horses.

Upon hearing that the second batch of supplies had arrived, Luo Ping's expression turned serious: "So fast? It seems the battle order is about to be issued."

The first batch of supplies and personnel for the second brigade arrived just a few days ago, but the second batch came right afterward.

Moreover, these are the rarest types of shells; it's obvious why.

"This time Chiang Kai-shek mobilized 200,000 main troops, and even Sun Fanglu of the 11th War Zone was dispatched south from Changshan."

"They definitely need to achieve a victory before the National Assembly convenes, otherwise what will Chiang Kai-shek say during the meeting?"

Chen Chengxing was not surprised by the arrival of the supplies.

It's already November, and at the beginning of the month, the field headquarters held a meeting for officers at the regimental level and above.

At that time, it was mentioned that the central government had given instructions to crack down on Chiang Kai-shek's upcoming conference.

Chen Chengxing could even guess Noji's goal.

During this period, all units have been conducting targeted training.

Moreover, the second batch of supplies consisted entirely of mortar shells, with no shells for mountain guns.

This illustrates the importance of speed going forward.

However, even though everyone was prepared, the speed at which the battle orders were issued still far exceeded their expectations.

The telegram was delivered to Chen Chengxing early the next morning.

"As expected, the Guo army is going to attack Baima." Chen Chengxing handed the telegram to Luo Ping again.

"Go straight into enemy territory? Wouldn't that be a bit risky?" Luo Ping asked hesitantly.

North of Diqiu, there are now the 85th Reorganized Division and Sun Fanglu's troops from the 11th War Zone.

There are also two reorganized divisions in the Leize area to the southeast, and the 5th Army in Caozhou further south.

At this time, the Yellow River had not yet returned to its proper course, so there were no major obstacles if they wanted to provide support.

Moreover, Baima is not the front line; the Guo army has already advanced the front line to 20 kilometers south of Diqiu.

White Horse is already considered a defensive stronghold.

"There are dangers, but as long as we are well prepared, we can catch the enemy off guard."

As he spoke, Chen Chengxing got up and went to the map.

“根据情报，白马、黎阳、三道口一带是敌41师124旅；白马县南面的泥马村是104旅；再往南的安镇一带是47师125旅。”

"The headquarters of the 41st Division and the 122nd Brigade are still in Chenqiao; the headquarters of the 47th Division and the 127th Brigade are still in Pucheng."

"Oh, right, there's also Guanjia Town. There's a Hebei Province Second Security Brigade there."

"This time we are conducting a deep penetration operation, and our targets are the 104th Brigade and the 125th Brigade."

Looking at the map, Luo Ping said, "Avoiding the enemy's front-line strongholds, penetrating deep into their territory, and attacking their headquarters—this is the tactic of striking a tiger out of its heart."

“That’s right. A fierce attack, like a tiger plucks out the heart. As long as we can destroy the enemy’s command system, the rest of the Guo army will be easy to defeat.” Chen Chengxing nodded.

This move is very targeted.

Once the Guo army loses its command, its ability to cooperate in combat is almost non-existent.

Then we can turn around and wipe out each of the enemy forces.

According to the General Headquarters' arrangements, the 104th Brigade was under the command of the D Column, while the 2nd Detachment was responsible for the 125th Brigade.

The C Column was assigned the task of being the general reserve force, staying behind the D Column and the Second Branch, responsible for monitoring the enemy north of Baima.

If necessary, they need to coordinate with the D column or two columns to attack the enemy.

However, Chen Chengxing estimated that the C-rank had virtually no chance of making a profit.

As for the G column, they needed to harass the enemy in the directions of Caozhou, Leize, and Lincheng. Moreover, in order to strengthen the G column, Sun Desheng's cavalry regiment was also transferred there.

"Sun Desheng's cavalry regiment and the field army's cavalry units, as well as various local independent brigades, have already begun operations in the Pucheng and Caozhou areas."

"Time is of the essence, we must set off tonight."

"This is a long-distance raid, and all units should make preparations in advance."

"Is everything clear?" Chen Chengxing asked.

"clear!".
After nightfall, local militia guerrillas began harassing the Kuomintang army's forward outposts.

Reconnaissance units of the main forces also participated to ensure the effectiveness of the battlefield cover.

Meanwhile, the main force secretly advanced towards Baima.

Although the Guo army had some doubts about the G army's actions, they did not realize the true situation.

Two days later, without the enemy's knowledge, the C and D columns and the second detachment broke into the enemy's defensive depth of more than 40 kilometers from the junction.

"Commander, the reconnaissance company reports that the enemy is completely unaware," Xu Wu reported.

“Very good.” Chen Chengxing nodded.

"According to intelligence, the headquarters of the 125th Brigade and the 275th Regiment are located in Anzhen Town, the 276th Regiment is located in Yingcun, and the 277th Regiment is located in Mazhuang."

41师和47师同样是6个团，但是41师是3旅6团，而47师则是2旅6团.
"Teams 1 and 2 are responsible for assaulting Anzhen, Team 3, with two regiments, will surround Yingcun and Mazhuang respectively, and Team 4 will serve as a reserve."

"Teams 1 and 2 must finish the battle before dawn, and then provide support to Ying Village and Ma Village respectively."

The commander-in-chief gave them 48 hours, but Chen Chengxing had no intention of taking it slow.

There was a piece of fatty meat waiting for him next to him.

At 11 p.m., the attack began.

With just one charge, the second force broke through the Guo army's positions on the outskirts of Anzhen.

"Holy crap! Can anyone tell me what's going on?!"

Awakened by the sound of gunfire, Yang Xianming, the brigade commander of the 125th Brigade, felt like he was going crazy.

From the moment he heard the gunfire and ran to the command post until all the outer positions were lost, less than half an hour had passed.

They weren't beaten this badly in the Battle of Taierzhuang.

"Brigadier General, it's the G Army," Chief of Staff Lu Dehai reported.

"How could I not know it was the G Army?" Yang Xianming retorted angrily.

"I want to know which unit of the G Army it is!"

"I don't know for now," Lu Dehai shook his head.

"However, according to reports from the front lines, the enemy has heavy firepower, ample automatic weapons, and a high level of tactical and technical skill."

Yang Xianming scratched his head. What's the difference between this and not saying anything at all?
Suddenly, Yang Xianming remembered something: "Does the other side have many semi-automatic weapons?"

"Semi-automatic weapons? According to reports from the front lines, there aren't many."

Hearing Lu Dehai's words, Yang Xianming breathed a sigh of relief.

"However, the enemy has quite a few infantry guns and mortars," Lu Dehai added immediately afterward.

Lu Dehai's additional comment left Yang Xianming speechless.

"Travel seat? Travel seat!"

Seeing Yang Xianming's face turn deathly pale, Lu Dehai quickly stepped forward to help him up.

"We're doomed, we're doomed, it's definitely Chen Chengxing coming!" Yang Xianming muttered.

Since he was going to march on Diqiu, Yang Xianming must have known about the G army.

In his view, the most capable fighter in the G Army in this area was Chen Chengxing, who used the name of a detachment to deceive people everywhere.

The second detachment accounts for half of the combat power of the 100,000-strong G army.

"Chen Chengxing? The Second Detachment?!" Lu Dehai's expression changed drastically.

All the officers in the Guo Army who knew about the Second Detachment unanimously believed that this detachment was a deception used by the G Army.

Because in terms of both numbers and combat effectiveness, it far surpasses the other main columns of the G Army.

"Commander! What do we do?" Lu Dehai asked anxiously.

"What do we do? Break through! Break through immediately!" Yang Xianming said urgently.

The battle has only just begun, and Chen Chengxing may not have completed the encirclement of his troops yet.

This is my last chance!

(End of this chapter)