Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

In fact, it is not just the pseudo-Mongolian cavalry division.

The Japanese 26th Division was also severely damaged by the First Division of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Region and the 35th Army of the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army, so it is unknown how many times it has been replenished with new soldiers. The Lieutenant General Commander of the 26th Division alone has been dismissed twice due to defeats.

These are the achievements of the famous anti-Japanese general Fu Zuoyi in Suiyuan. Including the Battle of Baotou, it can be said that among the current Chinese generals, there are really few who have performed better than him.

In any case, in the two major battles of Xuanhuai Campaign and Baotou Campaign, two Japanese brigade commanders, rank of major general, were killed.

Furthermore, the Eighth Route Army had been ambushing Japanese transport convoys for several days. Over the course of a month, over 10,000 Japanese soldiers were killed or wounded. Including the puppet troops, the total losses reached over 20,000.

How could Ningji Okamura accept such high casualties?

Chapter 371 Okamura Neiji's mopping-up plan

How many people were there in the North China Front Army?

The two newly transferred divisions only have about 200,000 people added together.

The combined casualties in the Battle of Zhongtiao Mountain and other battlefields resulted in nearly 30,000 casualties for the North China Front Army.

The blow was too great.

Such casualties have seriously affected Okamura Ningci's original strategy. According to Okamura Ningci's original idea, the Zhongtiaoshan Campaign should be concluded as soon as possible, and then the Eighth Route Army base should be swept. In Okamura Ningci's view, the Eighth Route Army is the biggest threat in North China. In North China, the Nationalist troops are all sitting still. Except for Fu Zuoyi's troops, few troops take the initiative to attack. As long as the Japanese army does not attack them, they will not take the initiative to come and provoke the Japanese army.

Unfortunately, the Imperial Headquarters and the Chinese Expeditionary Force were determined to launch the Battle of Southern Shanxi to eliminate the Nationalist forces in Zhongtiao Mountain. Without their insistence, Ningji Okamura would never have clashed with the Nationalist forces in Zhongtiao Mountain.

Look at the situation now.

The heavy casualties of the Battle of Southern Shanxi gave the Eighth Route Army more than six months to recuperate. Given the current situation of the North China Front Army, how could they possibly sweep through the Eighth Route Army base? After assuming command of the North China Front Army, Okamura Neiji carefully studied the Eighth Route Army's situation. The more he learned about it, the more worried he became.

The Eighth Route Army seemed to be invincible.

No matter how we wipe them out, they will spring back to life.

"Commander, the 98th Army has entered the Qinshui County area. Do you think we should send troops to continue the encirclement and suppression?"

The predecessor of the 98th Army can be traced back to Yang Hucheng's th Route Army.

It is considered a Shaanxi Army unit.

There are many troops in Zhongtiao Mountain, including the Central Army, the Zhensong Army, the Yunnan Army, and the Shaanxi Army. Among them, the Shaanxi Army is the largest. Even if they are not from Yang Hucheng's 17th Route Army, many of them have the blood of the Shaanxi Army.

The Fourth Army, known as the "Iron Pillar of Zhongtiao Mountain," was the offspring of the Seventeenth Route Army. However, due to its close relationship with the Eighth Route Army, it was transferred out of Zhongtiao Mountain. However, although the Fourth Army was transferred, some of the remaining units, such as the 98th Army, also had the blood of the Seventeenth Route Army.

He performed very well in the Battle of Zhongtiao Mountain.

They began to actively defend, but later found that Zhongtiao Mountain could not be defended, so they chose to break out from the front and came to Qinshui.

"Do we have enough troops now?"

"The main Nationalist forces in Zhongtiao Mountain have already crossed the river. The only organized Nationalist unit left in Shanxi is the 98th Army. Now there are only a few scattered Nationalist troops in Zhongtiao Mountain. Although they are numerous, they are not a formidable force. Our main forces can withdraw from Zhongtiao Mountain. We can extract 98 to battalions to encircle and suppress the th Army."

Chief of Staff of the North China Front Army, Moritake Tanabe, spoke.

There were still tens of thousands of national army troops left in Zhongtiao Mountain, but they were all defeated soldiers.

Now they are hiding here and there, and dare not fight with the Japanese army. Therefore, the Japanese army will soon withdraw from Zhongtiao Mountain.

If we draw out twenty or thirty battalions from them, there will be five or six mixed brigades, or two or three divisions.

"Twenty or thirty battalions, twenty or thirty battalions."

Okamura Neiji thought for a while and said, "Twenty or thirty battalions are simply not enough. The 98th Army is next to the Eighth Route Army's Taiyue Military Region, the territory of the 129th Division. If we only send twenty or thirty battalions, it will not only be difficult to wipe out the 98th Army, but we may also lose more troops.

Ningji Okamura rejected this idea.

Twenty or thirty battalions were quite powerful, and it wouldn't be a problem for them to destroy the 98th Army. The problem was that the 98th Army was currently located in the base of the 129th Division. During the Hundred Regiments Campaign, the 129th Division had demonstrated remarkable combat effectiveness.

If we are not careful, not only will it become difficult to wipe out the 98th Army, but we will also suffer a lot of casualties on our side.

This is not worth the gain.

"Commander, we need to revise our previous plan to sweep the Eighth Route Army base. Given the current situation, it will be difficult for us to carry out the original plan."

Seeing that Ningji Okamura opposed the continued encirclement and suppression of the 98th Army, Tanabe Moritake did not say anything.

Tanabe Moritake began to talk about the raid on the Eighth Route Army base.

Okamura Neiji's previous plan was to mobilize a large force for a comprehensive sweep of the Eighth Route Army base, primarily targeting the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei region and the 129th Division. To do this, Okamura Neiji even planned to pull several mixed brigades from Shandong, concentrating over 129 Japanese troops, along with nearly 20 puppet troops, security forces, and police from Shanxi, Chahar, Hebei, and northern Henan, all to participate in the sweep. However, it was clear that the North China Front had suffered heavy casualties and was exhausted, lacking sufficient manpower to fully sweep the Eighth Route Army base.

Although the 17th and 33rd Divisions were transferred from the Central China Front Army.

However, the casualties in the Battle of Zhongtiao Mountain were too heavy. Sixteen thousand casualties were unacceptable for the short-staffed North China Front Army.

Don't think that 16,000 casualties mean that 16,000 people are unable to fight.

That's not how it's calculated.

The 16,000 casualties were not the casualties of a single unit, but the casualties of the entire Japanese army involved in the Battle of Zhongtiaoshan. Some units suffered heavy casualties, and the entire unit would lose its combat effectiveness.

For example, if an infantry battalion of about 1,000 people suffers 400 to 500 casualties, the unit will lose its combat effectiveness. If it suffers around 300 casualties, the infantry battalion will be severely damaged.

Sixteen thousand casualties effectively rendered a Japanese force of thirty to forty thousand men incapable of combat. This meant that three or four divisions were temporarily unable to participate in combat. It was unknown how long it would take to replenish the ranks with new recruits.

This time, when launching the Zhongtiaoshan Campaign, Okamura Ningji was able to mobilize 21 troops, which was already the limit of the North China Front Army. He even transferred the st Division from the Shandong battlefield to Shanxi. Only then was he able to raise troops and launch the Zhongtiaoshan Campaign.

Now, due to the Battle of Zhongtiao Mountain, several regiments and several independent mixed brigades have lost their combat effectiveness. Where can the North China Front Army draw so many troops to fully sweep the Eighth Route Army base area?

So the original plan had to be changed.

Looking at the map, Ningji Okamura said, "Then change the plan. Change the comprehensive sweep to a focused sweep. Sweep them one by one and solve them one by one."

"Commander, where should we focus our raid?"

"What do you think?"

"The Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Eighth Route Army. Of all the Eighth Route Army units, the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Eighth Route Army has been the most active in recent years and poses the greatest threat to Peking. Eliminating the Eighth Route Army's Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei base area is the top priority. While the other Eighth Route Army units are also dangerous, they don't pose the same direct threat as the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Eighth Route Army.

Tanabe Moritake immediately said it was the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region.

If we were to say the most powerful unit in the Eighth Route Army right now, it would be the 129th Division. This is because the 129th Division has been developing together, with little division. Compared to bases like the Jin-Cha-Ji region, which developed with only men, the proportion of veteran Red Army members is much higher. Therefore, the unit's combat effectiveness is truly formidable.

But compared with the base of the 129th Division, the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei base was located around Peking.

The Eighth Column's bases, the Jidong Base Area, the Jizhong Base Area, and the First Jin-Cha-Ji Division directly surrounded Peking. The threat to Peking was too great. Furthermore, the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region operated directly around Peking, exerting a negative political influence.

In addition to its political influence, the Jin-Cha-Ji Eighth Route Army developed the fastest and had the largest number of troops in the entire Eighth Route Army system. Therefore, the Jin-Cha-Ji Eighth Route Army also achieved the most brilliant results.

Therefore, Tanabe Moritake believed that the first area that the North China Front Army should sweep away was the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei base area.

"Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Eighth Route Army, who do you think should be dealt with first?"

"Jin-Cha-Ji Division 1."

"District One?"

The Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region was an important opponent of the North China Front Army.

Therefore, the Japanese army attached great importance to the intelligence of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region.

He also understood that the First Jin-Cha-Ji Division was the most powerful division within the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region. Tanabe Moritake immediately stated, "Within the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region, the Jizhong Eighth Route Army, while numerous, is not very effective. More importantly, the Jizhong region is a plain, allowing us to mobilize large forces to sweep through the Jizhong Eighth Route Army at any time. The Yidong and Rehe Eighth Route Armies are also causing quite a stir, but they haven't yet become a major force, and their forces are limited in size. Only the First Jin-Cha-Ji Division and the Eighth Column pose the greatest threat to us. They not only have numerous troops but also formidable combat capabilities. Furthermore, their territories are close to Peking, posing a direct threat to the city. If we want to focus our efforts on a sweep, we should focus on the First Jin-Cha-Ji Division and the Eighth Column."

Ningji Okamura nodded slightly.

I strongly support Tanabe Moritake's views.

Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei is located around Peking and poses the greatest threat to Peking.

More importantly, the location of Jin-Cha-Ji posed the greatest threat to Japan's transportation lines. Jin-Cha-Ji could threaten Japan's four most important railways in North China: the Ping-Han Railway, the Zheng-Tai Railway, the Ping-Sui Railway, and the Tong-Pu Railway.

Therefore, it is right to focus on attacking Jin-Cha-Ji.

Among the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region, the First Division and the Eighth Column were the strongest and posed the greatest threat to the Japanese army. During the Hundred Regiments Campaign, the most ferocious units on the Jin-Cha-Ji side were the First Division and the Eighth Column.

The battle of Dongtuanbao fought by the first division and the first regiment made the North China Front Army lose face.

After all, the Eighth Route Army had previously relied on ambushes to defeat the Japanese. However, in the Battle of Dongtuanbao, the Eighth Route Army faced off against a reinforced squadron of well-fortified Japanese troops. Ultimately, they annihilated the entire force.

Although the group suffered heavy casualties.

While this battle greatly boosted the morale of the Eighth Route Army, it severely damaged the morale of the Japanese army, as the Japanese army had to admit that the combat effectiveness of the elite troops of the Eighth Route Army was now comparable to that of the Japanese army.

"Okay. The 17th, 37th, and 41st Divisions, the st Independent Mixed Brigade, and the th Cavalry Brigade will continue their sweep here and completely eliminate the scattered Kuomintang troops here. The rd and th Independent Mixed Brigades will return to the Zhengtai Road and ensure its rapid restoration. The th Independent Mixed Brigade will be transferred to Suiyuan, and the other units will return to their original bases for repairs as soon as possible. In September, we will begin sweeping the Jin-Cha-Ji Eighth Route Army. Develop a new sweeping plan for the Jin-Cha-Ji Eighth Route Army as soon as possible. I don't like conventional sweeps; I need you to devise a tactic that will surprise the Jin-Cha-Ji Eighth Route Army."

Ningji Okamura looked down on Tada Shun.

They had no tactics when they raided the Eighth Route Army base.

As soon as they planned to raid, they began preparing supplies and mobilizing troops. The Eighth Route Army's intelligence agencies were no fools; they could predict the Japanese troops' targets as soon as they made a move. Therefore, the Eighth Route Army quickly prepared.

But Ningji Okamura didn't like this conventional tactic.

He wants some fresh tactics.

"Yes."

"Let's set the target of this sweep on the First Division of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Region and the Eighth Column.

Chapter 372 Judging the Japanese Army's Movements

After the Battle of Zhongtiao Mountain, the Eighth Route Army was very nervous.

After the Hundred Regiments Campaign, the Japanese army occasionally conducted raids, but these were small-scale operations. To put it bluntly, both sides engaged in minor skirmishes along the border, and no large-scale clashes occurred. However, the Eighth Route Army knew that the Japanese army was bound to launch a large-scale raid on the Eighth Route Army base. The Hundred Regiments Campaign had caused such heavy casualties to the Japanese army, so how could the Japanese army not retaliate?

Now that the Battle of Zhongtiaoshan is over, the Japanese army's biggest opponent in North China is the Eighth Route Army.

As expected, after the Japanese army withdrew from Zhongtiao Mountain, they returned to their homes and began to rest. Just one month later, at the end of August, the Japanese army began to mobilize frequently again.

At this time, many Japanese troops did not even have new recruits.

Under such circumstances, Ningji Okamura still had to launch a mopping-up operation.

日军在石家庄、保定周围集中了21师团的两个联队，33师团两个联队、35师团两个联队、110师团，总共10个野战联队。做出围困冀中八路军的态势。然后是蓟是县、遵化、密云一带，集中33师团的215联队、36师团的224联队、独立混成第八旅团、独立混成第十六旅团，配合27师团开始围住翼冀东根据地。

The wind and rain are coming and the building is full of wind.

Based on the deployment of Japanese troops, the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region judged that the Japanese army was going to sweep the Hebei-Central Military Region and the Hebei-Eastern Military Region.

Of course, the Japanese army did not take other actions.

The 26th Regiment of the 11th Division and two regiments of the 17th Division slowly moved towards Tongpu Road, close to the Second and Fifth Divisions of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Region.

"Old leader, I feel something is wrong."

The Japanese army began to take action, and of course the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei region also had to take action.

The military district held a meeting.

The focus of the discussion was on how to break the Japanese army's raids.