Anti-Japanese War: I have unlimited assistance

Chapter 227 Intelligence Asymmetry!
Among the many bases of the Eighth Route Army, the Jinzhong base was relatively small.

After all, the three regiments had only just arrived in the Jinzhong base area and the territory they controlled was not very large. There were about 15 civilians in the jurisdiction of the three regiments.

The work of mobilizing the people to go to Mount Wutai to escape the war also encountered some difficulties.

Fortunately, the Japanese postponed the mopping-up attack due to problems with manpower and combat supplies.

During this period, the three regiments fully mobilized the masses and carried out ideological education. Under the cover of the main force and militia, the secret transfer of 15 people was completed within just half a month.

After completing the secret transfer, brothers Ding Wei and Kong Jie led their respective troops to Meng County overnight to join the main force of the New 1st Regiment.

After supper, Li Yunlong immediately called Ding Wei and Kong Jie, as well as the battalion commanders and staff of each regiment to hold an anti-mopping-up operation meeting.

Li Yunlong glanced at everyone and said solemnly, "According to the latest intelligence, the Japanese army has dispatched the 20th Division and two puppet army divisions, with a total force of more than troops, intending to encircle and sweep our Jinzhong base."

When everyone heard this, their expressions became a little solemn.

The reason why the Eighth Route Army was able to win so many battles was basically because they achieved advantages such as ambushes, outnumbered troops, and occupying terrain.

In the case of frontal combat, the Japanese army had artillery and aircraft support, the Eighth Route Army had no advantage in firepower, and its disadvantage in manpower was even more obvious.

This time, the three regiments had to face a frontal attack from one Type A division and two divisions of the Japanese army, and the pressure was enormous.

"This was an extremely dangerous anti-mopping-up operation."

The speaker was Li Wenying, the political commissar of the independent regiment and the only political commissar of the three regiments:
"Comrades, you must have a clear understanding, but we have to fight this battle."

"If we don't fight this battle, the Japanese will find that the people have already evacuated once they enter the Jinzhong base area."

"The Japanese have been preparing for so long, they will definitely not give up."

"By then, the Japanese 20th Division will surely seize the opportunity to attack the Jin-Cha-Ji base area and seek out the main force of the Eighth Route Army in Jinzhong for a decisive battle."

"Rather than letting the devils enter the Jin-Cha-Ji base area, it is better to fight a decisive battle with one of the devils in the Jinzhong base area."

"Let the people of the Jinzhong base area see that our Eighth Route Army is not the Central Army or the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army. We will not abandon the people..."

Political Commissar Li emphasized why this battle should be fought and how to fight it well.

The people in the base area have already moved away, so their three regiments can move outside the encirclement and return after the Japanese leave.

but!

This will make the Japanese even more unscrupulous. From now on, the northern part of the Jinzhong base will be treated as the Japanese's back garden. The Japanese can come and go as they please.

Neither Li Yunlong, Ding Wei nor Kong Jie could tolerate this.

When you are not strong enough, just bear with it and you can get back at them later.

But now that the three regiments have some assets, can they still be bullied by the Japanese?
The more you take a step back, the angrier you will be; the more you endure, the more you will lose; the more you fight, the more you will see the bigger the situation will be.

As soon as Li Wenying finished speaking, Li Yunlong said, "Commissar Li's words are very good, but I want to correct one thing. We are not fighting a decisive battle with a certain group of devils. Instead, we should look for opportunities to severely damage or even destroy a group of devils. We will not fight a battle that will suffer losses or make us lose money."

Kong Jie asked, "Old Li, did Boss Lin give you the Japanese battle plan?"

"How can there be so many good things?" Li Yunlong shook his head. "Boss Lin only gave the Japanese troops and time to launch a mop-up operation."

Kong Jie looked regretful. He had thought that Boss Lin would provide information about the Japanese's combat plan.

Boss Lin's intelligence was surprisingly accurate; he could even get information about the travels of Japanese generals.

If Boss Lin could get the complete battle plan of the Japanese raid, then the three Jinzhong regiments would be fighting from a God's perspective in this battle.

Winning this anti-mopping-up operation will be much easier and will result in fewer casualties.

However, Kong Jie was also very clear that Boss Lin's intelligence personnel had obtained top-secret intelligence many times, so it was normal for the Japanese to be on guard.

It is even possible that the Japanese high-ranking officials leaked false information through Boss Lin.

After all, the Japanese are not fools, otherwise they would not have been able to occupy so much Chinese territory in such a short period of time.

Ding Wei asked, "What are the origins of these two pseudo-military advisors?"

Li Yunlong replied: "The composition of these two puppet army divisions is quite complex. They include the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army, the Central Army, bandits, and troops from the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army Security Corps."

Ding Wei nodded. "That's nothing to be afraid of. The combat effectiveness of these puppet troops is only second-rate at best. Any main battalion from our three regiments can defeat an entire brigade of these puppet troops."

Compared with other Eighth Route Army and Chinese troops, the three regiments of the Jinzhong base were extremely well-equipped.

Mortars and machine guns are equipped at the battalion and company levels, and the regimental level has artillery reinforcements from mountain artillery, infantry guns and 120mm mortars.

The puppet army has no fighting spirit at all. After a few rounds of shelling, they will probably collapse.

After a pause, Ding Wei continued, "Our biggest threat is still the Japanese 20th Division. Lao Li, what is your battle plan?"

The combat effectiveness of the 20th Division was at a lower-middle level among the Japanese Type A divisions.

It is far behind the 5th and 6th Divisions, which are recognized as the Japanese army's most powerful units.

Especially after the 20th Division fought in North China for nearly a year, a lot of veteran elite soldiers were consumed. Although some high-quality soldiers were added, the combat effectiveness was definitely not as good as that of the 20th Division last year.

However, a lean camel is bigger than a horse. After all, it is a standing Type A division, and its combat effectiveness is not comparable to that of a Type B division. Everyone looked at Li Yunlong. Everyone knew that Li Yunlong had many tricks in fighting.

Moreover, Li Yunlong never suffered losses in battles. Since he dared to fight the 20th Division, he must have a battle plan.

"Hey hey hey..."

Li Yunlong took out a map from the map bucket, placed it on the table, and pointed at it with his index finger, analyzing:

"Look, this is the territory of our Jinzhong base, this is the territory of the independent regiment, this is the territory of the new third regiment, and this is the territory of our new first regiment. The territories of our three regiments are not very large."

"But our three regiments are too close to the Beitongpu Road and the Zhengtai Railway. The Japanese will definitely regard us as a thorn in their side."

"This time, the devils must be coming to destroy the main force of the Eighth Route Army in our Jinzhong base."

"Since they are here to annihilate us, the Japs will definitely not attack from one or two fronts, but from multiple fronts, or even from all sides."

Ding Wei, Kong Jie and others nodded, saying that this analysis was correct.

If the Japanese attacked in one or two directions, Li Yunlong's tactic of "breaking one point and shaking the entire line" would not work.

The three regiments of the Jinzhong Military Region had no choice but to retreat to Mount Wutai.

Even if an army of more than 10,000 to 20,000 Japanese and puppet troops was placed there to be fought by the three regiments of the Jinzhong Military Region, it would be impossible for the three regiments of Jinzhong to defeat it with their current strength.

Of course, if the Japanese really used this tactic, they would appear to be very stupid.

Because the three regiments of the Jinzhong Military Region received intelligence in advance and could retreat at any time.

It is impossible for the Japanese to keep the troops of a Type A division in a remote place like the Jinzhong Military Region for a long time.

After the Japanese and puppet troops finished their raid and left, I, the three regiments and the common people came back.

The next time the Japanese army mobilizes troops and combat supplies to attack the base area with great fanfare, the three regiments of the Jinzhong base area can withdraw again.

You're here? Oh, I'm leaving now.

You left? Hey, I'm back.

This is the essence of guerrilla tactics.

If I can beat you, I will fight. If I can’t, I will retreat.

Li Yunlong's advantage was the information about the strength and time of the Japanese raid provided in advance by Boss Lin.

The Japanese thought that the Eighth Route Army and the people in the Jinzhong base area knew nothing about the upcoming raid.

This time, Li Yunlong plans to take advantage of intelligence asymmetry to have some fun with the Japanese.

After a brief pause, Li Yunlong continued, "This is my battle plan."

"The first step is to deploy the new recruit battalions of our three regiments and the main force of the machine gun battalion of the new regiment in Meng County."

"We also dug trenches and foxholes outside the city to create the illusion that we were determined to defend Mengxian County to the death."

"Let the Japanese think that the main force of my New 1st Regiment is in Mengxian County, and the real main force will be ambushed on the road the Japanese must pass through. This way, we can catch the Japanese off guard."

"After defeating the Japanese ambush, we will retreat quickly without lingering in the fight."

Everyone's eyes suddenly lit up. This tactic was good.

After Boss Lin personally delivered the goods last time, the three regiments divided the weapons and equipment captured and earned, one-third of which were equally divided. Each regiment expanded a new battalion of about 600 soldiers.

Moreover, Li Yunlong also asked Boss Lin to advance 2000 sets of military uniforms and helmets.

These new recruits looked no different from the main force, and the Japanese reconnaissance aircraft observers certainly couldn't tell them apart.

Moreover, deploying the main force of machine guns in Mengxian County and fighting a few rounds with the Japanese aircraft will make the Japanese believe that the main force of the New 1st Regiment is in Mengxian County.

"Look," Ding Wei said, pointing to the map, "from Shouyang County to Meng County, there are three roads: one highway and two small roads."

"Looking at the map, the terrain along these three roads is full of ditches and trenches, making them suitable for ambushes. There will be Japanese and puppet troops along each road."

"But if we want to catch the bigger fish, we can only ambush the Japanese troops advancing north along the highway. These Japanese troops are likely to be equipped with artillery, tanks and armored vehicles."

"If we're lucky, we might make a fortune."

"Ha ha…"

Li Yunlong nodded and smiled:
"Old Ding, you're damn fit to be a military advisor. You're thinking the same thing as me. I'm planning an ambush on the Mengshou Highway. I've already personally scouted the ambush location."

During the period of secret evacuation of civilians in the military region, Li Yunlong was not idle.

Ding Wei's mouth curled up slightly.

Noncommittal.

(End of this chapter)