Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

But Ningji Okamura didn't care about that.

The troops must continue the sweep.

Since the big sweep began, Ningji Okamura has not had a good rest.

He had always hoped that the Japanese army would find the main force of the Eighth Route Army and annihilate it in one battle. Unfortunately, the Eighth Route Army and the Japanese army had fought for so many years that they knew each other very well.

Although some troops were also severely damaged by the Japanese army.

But the main force was not so easily captured by the Japanese. The North China Front Army's current strength was not enough to conduct a dragnet search of the Eighth Route Army base. In the past, when the Japanese army raided the Eighth Route Army base, they directly divided it into blockade forces and combat forces. This was to prevent the Eighth Route Army from escaping the encirclement.

However, although the Japanese army now has blockade troops, they are too few in number to block all the passages. Because the Japanese army is short of manpower, if the blockade troops are too large, the combat troops will not be enough.

Therefore, the Japanese army did not surround the main force of the Eighth Route Army during this mopping-up operation.

Every day there were reports of the capture of some place, but there was no news of the annihilation of the main forces of the Eighth Route Army. On the contrary, the situation in Chahar and Suiyuan was becoming increasingly critical, and the Eighth Column of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Region had been fighting major battles during this period.

Especially after the Cha'nan Detachment attacked Kangzhuang, the Japanese troops in the entire Northeast Shanxi, Chahar, and Pingbei areas were mobilized. The mobilization of the Japanese troops also affected the Eighth Route Army troops.

At this time, the level of the generals of the front-line troops is reflected.

For example, Kang Shui, the commander of the First Special Agent Regiment, was very clever. Although he was unable to contact the columns and detachments, he still relied on his own judgment to harass the Japanese troops and prevent them from moving south at will.

Some frontline generals were slower to react.

It wasn't until several days later that they realized what was happening. Regardless of whether they reacted quickly or slowly, the Eighth Route Army's frontline commanders all reacted. Even the local troops and the vast majority of militia knew that the battlefield situation had changed.

Therefore, they immediately changed the passive anti-mopping-up situation and took the initiative to attack the Japanese and puppet troops.

As a result, there were calls for help everywhere.

This gave Ningji Okamura a headache.

Especially as the Eighth Column gathered a large force and several regiments joined the battle, the Japanese casualties increased sharply. However, facing the growing strength of the Shanxi-Chahar-Wing Eighth Route Army, Ningci Gangcun suddenly felt that he had little recourse.

The Eighth Column has already become a force to be reckoned with in Chahar.

Unless the North China Front Army increases its forces and dispatches two or three divisions to Chahar, Ningji Okamura really doesn't know how to reverse the passive situation of the Japanese and puppet troops in Chahar.

"Commander, this is an order from headquarters.

"whats the matter?"

"Headquarters will withdraw the 21st and 33rd Divisions from our North China Front Army and march south.

"what?"

Ningji Okamura stood up in a flash.

Then, he took the telegram from Deputy Chief of Staff Arimi Seizo. After taking a look at it, Okamura Neiji's face changed drastically. His expression shifted for a long time before he sighed and handed the telegram to Tanabe Moritake, Chief of Staff of the North China Front Army, who was standing beside him.

Tanabe Moritake took the telegram and looked at it, and his face also turned ugly.

The order from headquarters was direct, demanding that the North China Front Army not delay even a moment. The 21st and 33rd Divisions were to move south immediately and report on their specific situations. If the divisions were understaffed, the North China Front Army was to quickly replenish them.

There was no room for bargaining for the North China Front Army at all.

But this is not that easy.

The North China Front Army is currently conducting a sweep of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei base area, and various units are scattered across the region. For example, two regiments of the 33rd Division are currently sweeping the First Sector of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei region, while one regiment is currently engaged in combat with the Eighth Column. It's far from easy to expect them to quickly withdraw from the battlefield and prepare to march south.

The Japanese army's raid was a whole.

The sudden loss of a unit would directly affect the safety of the rest. Even if the unit evacuated haphazardly, it would inevitably be pursued by the Eighth Route Army. Who would be held responsible for such a massive loss?

Therefore, Tanabe Moritake asked cautiously, "Commander, what is this?"

"The Americans, the Americans have caused me great trouble."

Okamura Neiji was a general, commander of the North China Front Army, and a high-ranking figure in the Japanese military. He was well aware of domestic affairs. He understood that the Imperial Headquarters had already decided to turn against Britain and the United States.

That's why so many troops were transferred south.

This was in preparation for an attack on Southeast Asia and the Pacific.

The Japanese army's withdrawal of troops from the North China Front Army did not happen after the outbreak of the Pacific War. Long before the Pearl Harbor incident, the Japanese army had already begun withdrawing troops from China to the south in preparation for the attack.

It just so happens that it conflicts with the current large-scale mopping-up operation of the North China Front Army.

The North China Front Army was already short of troops, and now two divisions had to be withdrawn, which made the troops in Okamura Ningji's hands even more stretched.

"Commander, what should we do now?"

Tanabe Moritake was very cautious.

Okamura Neiji had been in a bad mood recently, and now that something like this had happened, Tanabe Moritake was really worried that Okamura Neiji would explode with anger. The only way to withdraw two divisions to the south was to end the current mopping-up operation.

Ningji Okamura understood that going to war with the United States was a major strategic move.

He couldn't stop this order. So, although Okamura Neiji was very angry, he still said, "Make a withdrawal plan immediately. Prepare to have the 21st and 33rd Divisions move south. The headquarters has given us limited time, so there is no time to delay."

"Yes."

"Send a telegram to headquarters requesting that the 110th Division be reorganized into a three-command division, and that a new division be formed based on the th Independent Mixed Brigade, the th Independent Mixed Brigade, and the th Independent Mixed Brigade.

Ningji Okamura really has no solution now.

The North China Front Army originally numbered only about 20 men. Since the Battle of Zhongtiao Mountain this year, the Japanese army has been engaged in continuous fighting. Casualties have been severe, reaching a point where even new recruits cannot keep up with the rate of casualties. Now that the 21st and 33rd Divisions are being withdrawn south, the situation for the North China Front Army will be extremely dire. In other words, by the time the 21st and 33rd Divisions move south, the North China Front Army will have no mobile forces left.

Therefore, the only option is to expand the independent mixed brigade.

Although the quality of new recruits is declining, more is always better than less. The independent mixed brigade has about 5,000 people, and the newly formed three-command division has about 11,000 people.

"Yes."

Chapter 386 Complementary Advantages

Although Ningji Okamura was not happy with the transfer of the 21st and 33rd Divisions, he did not delay the order from the headquarters.

Because he knew that he could not refuse this matter.

The headquarters was already prepared for war with the United States. The navy was ready, and the army needed to follow suit. After all, a war with the United States wasn't just about the navy. Once the war broke out, the next step would be for the army to move south into the British and American colonies in Southeast Asia.

The headquarters has already begun preparations for the next battle, so it is still quite urgent to withdraw troops now. There is no time given to the North China Front Army, including the Central China Front Army.

Therefore, after the Chief of Staff of the North China Front Army, Tanabe Moritake, made a retreat plan, Ningji Okamura immediately ordered the troops to retreat according to the plan. Although he made a detailed retreat plan, Ningji Okamura was still worried.

They were afraid that something might go wrong during the retreat.

If problems arise during the troops' retreat and the Eighth Route Army seizes the opportunity, bad things will inevitably happen.

1941 10 Month 6 Day.

The Japanese troops that were conducting a large-scale sweep of the Jin-Cha-Ji base area began to withdraw from the Eighth Route Army base area one after another. Without any signs, the troops suddenly began to withdraw in turns.

The speed was so fast that the Eighth Route Army was completely caught off guard.

The Japanese army was very aggressive before, especially in the Eighth Route Army base area.

But suddenly, without any warning, they quickly chose to retreat.

The Eighth Route Army did not react at first, thinking that the Japanese army was plotting something. But as the Japanese army withdrew, they realized that the Japanese army had really ended its mopping-up operation.

It can be said that the Japanese army's sudden decision to retreat left the Eighth Route Army completely unprepared and with no time to prepare.

Instead, the local Eighth Route Army units, guerrillas, and some scattered main forces took advantage of the Japanese army's retreat. Although the Japanese army had made a good retreat plan, the sudden retreat caught them off guard.

After receiving the order to retreat, the Japanese and puppet troops on the front line thought something serious had happened and were in a state of panic.

As a result, some units failed to adhere to the retreat plan drawn up by the North China Front Army Command. The puppet troops, in particular, suddenly heard the order to retreat and ignored any plans. Some even fled, leaving the Japanese troops behind.

The puppet army's actions also affected some Japanese troops.

During the final retreat, some Japanese and puppet troops became disorganized. This gave the Eighth Route Army an opportunity to annihilate some of the isolated units and scavenged a large number of weapons and ammunition. Some Japanese and puppet troops, after being attacked, thought something was wrong and fled even faster.

The main force of the Eighth Route Army was much slower to react. It wasn't until more than a day after the Japanese began to retreat that they realized the Japanese were really going to end their mopping-up operation. So the scattered main force began to regroup and began to pursue the Japanese.

But it was still quite late.

Although some victories were achieved, the Japanese retreat was generally smooth.

The Japanese army retreated quickly, and the Eighth Route Army reoccupied the original base. After retaking the base, the Eighth Route Army units became even busier.

Due to the Japanese army's sweeping campaign and the "Three Alls Policy," the base area was severely damaged, with over 100,000 houses burned down.

After the Eighth Route Army recaptured the base area, the first thing they had to do was post-war recovery. It was already October, and the weather was starting to get cold. The troops had to help the people in the base area rebuild their homes as quickly as possible, otherwise who knows how many people would freeze to death this winter.

This is not an easy thing to do.

It required a lot of manpower and material resources. Therefore, after the anti-mopping-up campaign ended, all bases were very busy.

"You, the Eighth Column, fought well."

It was not until November that Yang Quanwu personally came to Beilingzhuang, Sheng County, the headquarters of the 11th Column.

Yang Quanwu was very happy to see Wang Qiuyun and Wei Hongjun.

During this anti-mopping-up campaign, the Eighth Column's performance was the most impressive. Although the First Division bore the heaviest brunt of the enemy's attacks, precisely because of this, the battles it fought were relatively minor and small-scale.

Although a large number of Japanese and puppet troops were annihilated, many of them were achieved through frequent battles.

But the 8th Column fought large-scale and aggressive battles.

Several ambushes were launched in succession.

The Chadong and Pingbei detachments dealt a heavy blow to the Japanese army in the early stages of their mopping-up operations, completely annihilating two Japanese battalions. Later, when the Japanese launched large-scale mopping-up operations, the Chaxi and Chadong detachments jointly crushed the mopping-up operations of the 26nd Independent Mixed Brigade and the 13th Regiment of the 13th Division, completely annihilating two Japanese battalions and severely damaging the rd Battalion of the th Regiment.

The Chanan and Chadong detachments joined forces to storm Kangzhuang, annihilating two Japanese battalions. Other troops supporting Kangzhuang were also hit. It can be said that the Eighth Column achieved brilliant results in this Japanese sweep.

Completely wipe out six independent battalions.

The sheer scale of the victory can be gauged simply by the amount of captured weapons and equipment. During this counter-mopping-up operation, the Eighth Column captured over 50 heavy machine guns and over 170 light machine guns. They also captured a large number of grenade launchers, mortars, rapid-fire guns, flat-fire guns, infantry guns, and mountain artillery.

That's why Yang Quanwu praised it so much.

"Old leader, the biggest advantage of our 8th Column's current base is its vast territory and sufficient strategic depth, while the enemy's strength is average. This provides favorable conditions for our troops to engage in mobile warfare and large-scale battles. When the Japanese army sweeps our base, they will consciously or unconsciously distance themselves from each other. This creates space and time for us to ambush.

"Ah."

Yang Quanwu nodded.

The Chahar region has a small population but a very large area. Coupled with its many mountains, it was a perfect place for the Eighth Route Army to develop. The Japanese army was often undermanned in sweeps across such a vast area, leaving many gaps. Of course, this region was not without disadvantages, the biggest of which was thalassemia.

To put it bluntly, it is poverty.

District 1 has money, food, and a large population.

But the area is not as large as the Chahar region. Once the Japanese army launched a sweep, their sweeping forces did not need to be separated by a long distance. Therefore, if the Japanese army's sweeping forces were too large, they would not be able to fight a large-scale battle. The Japanese army would not give too many opportunities to fight large-scale battles.