Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

This was an almost complete annihilation of the 67th Army.

Wei Hongjun thought for a moment and said, "Send a telegram to Comrade Zhang Zihua, asking him to allow the Shanxi-Suiyuan Eighth Route Army to rest for a while. As for the logistical supplies needed by the Shanxi-Suiyuan Eighth Route Army, I will notify the local government to collect them first. Also, have Comrade Zhang Zihua and Comrade Zhang Zhongxun discuss whether the rebellious New 11th Brigade can move with our troops first. The troops will continue to advance and recapture Guisui.

After giving the order, Wei Hongjun continued to look at the map.

Consider how the troops should develop next.

Zhu Liangcai stepped forward and asked, "What do you want to do by having the new 11th Brigade follow Comrade Zhang Zihua?"

"A force of nearly 3000 men. And I heard there are over 11 Party members in the new 500th Brigade alone. This is a cohesive and combat-ready force. Recently, our Jinchayi wing has been drawing troops into the Northeast, specifically our Jirecha Military Region. Over troops have entered the Northeast, all of them field army units."

We are currently in dire need of troops. The new 11th Brigade is a ready-made unit, and one that served as a meritorious service member during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. This unit has a strong foundation.

Not only did the Party organization lay the political foundation, but the officers at all levels of this unit were trained at regular military academies. Like Deng Baoshan, they had fought many tough battles during the Anti-Japanese War, and the officers in this unit were all veterans. Therefore, if we send some cadres to reorganize this unit, and then incorporate some local troops, we can quickly build a main force of 7,000 to 8,000 men."

The best thing about the new 11th Brigade is that it is a fully organized unit with sufficient officers at all levels. It is a complete unit.

No retraining required at all.

Moreover, there are more than 500 party members in the army, which means there is no need to worry about political issues in the army.

It is also easy to transform the troops.

As long as they were equipped with manpower, they would be a force that could be deployed quickly. Otherwise, the Wei Hongjun would not have considered this unit. Jin-Cha-Ji had many local troops, and it was entirely possible to upgrade several of them to join the main force. However, that would take too long, and it would be difficult to build up combat effectiveness.

Zhu Liangcai shook his head.

"Your idea is very good. But I heard that the party members and cadres of the new 11th Brigade were previously under the leadership of the Jinsui Prefectural Committee.

Will they agree to us eating up their troops?

"Of course I agree."

Wei Hongjun pointed towards Liangcheng and said, "Comrade Zhang Zhongxun commanded three main brigades of the Jinsui Military Region, as well as over ten thousand troops from the Suimeng Military Region. Over the past twenty days, they've suffered repeated defeats, resulting in heavy casualties and a significant loss of weapons, ammunition, and logistical supplies. The Jinsui Military Region is already impoverished, and weapons and ammunition are extremely limited. So, do you know what we in Jin-Cha-Ji currently have the most?"

"Weapons and ammunition."

"Correct."

Currently, each military region of the Eighth Route Army has its own military factory.

The most powerful of these was the Jin-Cha-Ji region. This was because they had the industrial city of Xuanhua, and they captured major cities like Zhangjiakou and Baoding. A large amount of machinery and equipment was captured by the Eighth Route Army.

There are tens of thousands of workers in various military factories in Xuanhua alone.

The number of workers has exceeded that of Yan Xishan’s Taiyuan Arsenal.

Therefore, the current military industry in Jin-Cha-Ji is the most developed in the Eighth Route Army system. Even the military industries in Yan'an and the Eighth Route Army headquarters combined cannot compare to Jin-Cha-Ji.

Wei Hongjun said confidently, "For the severely damaged Eighth Route Army troops in Jinsui, the most important thing right now is to quickly gather the scattered troops and replenish weapons and ammunition. After all, they suffered heavy losses this time. The new 3000th Brigade, with less than 11 men, is not as important as imagined. Besides, we have annihilated so many of Fu Zuoyi's troops this time, and the weapons and ammunition we have taken from them will be enough for the Jinsui Military Region."

Zhu Liangcai looked at Wei Hongjun and couldn't help shaking his head.

Suddenly he said, "Old Wei, when the Eighth Column was developing, you weren't also plundering troops everywhere like this, were you?"

"Of course. Think about it. Our Eighth Column is a rising star. If I didn't go around recruiting troops and cadres, how would the army develop? Think about the leaders of our Jin-Cha-Ji Military Sub-district. When they were developing, which one of them didn't recruit other people's troops everywhere? Especially when it came to grabbing cadres, they were so angry that they fought each other blindly. My two old commanders almost came to blows because of the Pingxi Detachment incident.

"Hahaha."

Zhu Liangcai burst into laughter.

He arrived in Jin-Cha-Ji in the autumn of 1938. The near-violent brawl between Yang Quanwu and Deng Guo was a popular anecdote in Jin-Cha-Ji at the time. Zhu Liangcai had also heard about it after arriving in Jin-Cha-Ji.

However, Zhu Liangcai quickly said, "The New 11th Brigade's uprising is no small matter. It may have alarmed Yan'an. If we want to keep the New 11th Brigade in Jin-Cha-Yi, we still need to reach a cooperation agreement with the Jin-Sui Military Region as soon as possible."

Otherwise, it would be bad if there were any disputes.”

"Ah."

Wei Hongjun nodded.

After a moment's thought, he said, "The battle here is basically over. You will be responsible for the final work. Comrade Zhang Zhongxun is my old commander. I will go and see him. At the same time, I will arrange for the local government to collect supplies so that the Jinsui troops can settle down and rest. We both need to discuss the next battle plan, so it's a good opportunity to meet and talk about this matter."

Chapter 633 Retreat

Fu Zuoyi wanted to gather his troops and reorganize the defense.

But it was too late.

The troops were already preparing to retreat, but just as they were about to retreat, the Eighth Route Army pressed forward, catching Fu Zuoyi's troops off guard. Since ancient times, those who could organize a calm retreat of their troops were all first-class generals.

Because when organizing a retreat, troops are most likely to encounter problems. Just like this time, Fu Zuoyi's troops were well prepared for the retreat. They had already begun the retreat, but were suddenly attacked at this moment, leaving them mentally unprepared. Therefore, the Provisional 17th Division and the New 32nd Division were ambushed by the Eighth Route Army before they could even deploy their defenses.

Zheng Weishan can always find defense loopholes.

The troops broke in through the loophole.

Every time they exploited the loopholes of the Provisional 17th Division and the New 32nd Division, their troops fell into chaos.

The entire army was in disarray, and the command system failed. Initially, they tried to organize a defense, but soon found themselves surrounded by the Eighth Route Army. So, the troops began to retreat.

Problems arose as soon as the troops withdrew.

It turned into a rout.

This is true even if your newly formed 32nd Division and temporary 17th Division are elite troops.

This is a group effect.

If one person retreats, it will cause a chain reaction.

Even Fu Zuoyi had no solution.

The 101st Division was supposed to gather up these defeated troops, but the 10st Brigade and the 11st Self-Defense Brigade attacked faster than the Nationalist troops could retreat. The defeated soldiers disrupted the defensive positions of the th and th Provisional Divisions.

而后面突击的八路军部队，看到暂编第10师和暂编第11师并没有停止脚步。郑伟山反而是驱赶新编32师和暂编17师部队，弄乱暂编第10师和暂编第11师的阵地。然后继续继续猛冲猛打，根本不管又有其他部队加入进来。

a mess.

Fu Zuoyi tried several times to gather his troops but failed.

Fu Zuoyi had no choice but to quickly withdraw his troops from the battlefield to prevent the chaotic situation from affecting other troops. Unfortunately, it was too late. Zheng Weishan led his troops in an attack that was not only valiant but also very accurate. More importantly, the attack was swift, outrunning Fu Zuoyi's retreating troops. Even the fastest troops of the First Brigade were able to flank the retreating Provisional 10th and 11th Divisions. When Fu Zuoyi's troops retreated all the way to Guisui, they were stunned when they counted the losses of the troops.

"In Yigong, the commander of the 32nd Division, Li Mingding, the commander of the 17th Division, Zhu Dachun, and the commander of the 11th Division, Wang Zixiu, have not returned.

"Have you searched carefully?"

"Yes."

Fu Zuoyi's hands began to tremble.

The 35th Army, the rd Temporary Army, and the th Cavalry Army were all fundamental to Fu Zuoyi's survival. Chiang Kai-shek's concession to Fu Zuoyi as commander-in-chief of the th War Zone was based on his appreciation for the strength of Fu Zuoyi's troops. However, a single battle resulted in the loss of three division commanders.

Of these three, Li Mingding was Fu Zuoyi's true trusted general. He had a close relationship with Lu Yinglin, commander of the 35th Army, and was a favorite of Chen Changjie. Later, both Chen Changjie and Lu Yinglin became Fu Zuoyi's right-hand men, but Li Mingding was even more highly regarded by Fu Zuoyi, leading to his appointment as commander of the newly formed 32nd Division. As commander of the newly formed 32nd Division, Li Mingding held a crucial position within Fu Zuoyi's clique.

As for Zhu Dachun, he was also a capable general that Fu Zuoyi valued very much. After Fu Zuoyi declared Suiyuan independent, Zhu Dachun rose through the ranks due to his bravery in battle. He was separated from Fu Zuoyi's direct 35th Army and became the commander of the Provisional 17th Division.

Unlike Li Mingding and Zhu Dachun, who graduated from regular military academies and rose through the ranks of the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army, Wang Zixiu was a traitor and the head of the "Great Han Righteous Army." In 1936, the Great Han Righteous Army joined the Japanese in the invasion of Suiyuan, where they were defeated by Fu Zuoyi.

That was the famous "Bailingmiao Victory" fought by Fu Zuoyi in Suiyuan, when more than 6000 of the 2000 Han volunteers were annihilated.

At this time, Wang Zixiu led his troops to rebel and defected to Fu Zuoyi.

From that time on, he followed Fu Zuoyi in his battles.

Very good performance.

That's why Fu Zuoyi appointed Wang Zixiu, an officer from the puppet army, as the commander of the Provisional 11th Division.

But none of the three of them have come back yet.

"What about the casualties of the troops?"

“32师目前收拢的部队在2400人左右，17师收拢的部队大约1800人，10师收拢的部队1900人，11师收拢的部队2200人。除了这四个师之外，31师少了900人，101师这段时间一直在作战作，损失超过1400人。”

Fu Zuoyi was so anxious that he was sweating profusely.

Even during the most difficult period of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, his troops had never suffered such heavy losses.

The new 32nd Division, in particular, only managed to return with 2400 men, suffering losses exceeding 3000. While Fu Zuoyi's 35th Army was a top-tier elite force, it was significantly smaller than the Central Army. The 35th Army totaled only about 6000 men. Each of its three divisions consisted of approximately 8000 men, a significant drop from the -man strength of the Central Army's standard divisions.

As for the Provisional Third Army, its number was even smaller.

There were only about 14000 people in total, and each division had less than 5000 people.

But even so, the loss is too great.

Fu Zuoyi did a quick calculation and found that the 35th Army and the Third Provisional Army had lost 15000 men in this retreat. This loss was unacceptable to him. The 35th Army and the Third Provisional Army were elite troops that Fu Zuoyi had cultivated over many years, totaling just over men. Yet, half of them had been lost in one battle.

Fu Zuoyi sat up dejectedly.

Although Fu Zuoyi had his share of failures during his military career, none had been as unacceptable as this one. A truly gifted general, in 1927, he led a regiment to defend Tianzhen, a city Song Zheyuan battled for three months without success. In 1928, Fu Zuoyi led a division to capture Zhuozhou, where he was surrounded by the Fengtian Army. The Fengtian Army fought for over a hundred days but still failed to capture Zhuozhou. Fu Zuoyi's fame grew from this battle, and he subsequently rose through the ranks of the Shanxi Army.

The heaviest casualties for Fu Zuoyi were during the period after the July 7 Incident, when Japanese troops entered Shanxi on a large scale. However, everyone knew how powerful the Japanese army was at that time.

But now?

They were just a group of local soldiers who had just switched from guerrilla warfare to regular warfare.

However, in the first battle, his own troops suffered more than 15,000 casualties.

It's so uncomfortable.

Dong Qiwu was also very upset to see Fu Zuoyi like this. Originally, Chiang Kai-shek was very happy with the victory after the battle from Wuyuan. He kept increasing the power of the 12th War Zone, sending supplies to Fu Zuoyi's troops and increasing their pay.

Everyone was really high-spirited before.

They wanted to capture Jining, march to Zhangjiakou, and bring all of Chahar under Fu Zuoyi's control. They were all Fu Zuoyi's most trusted generals, and as his position grew, so too would they. They even considered expanding their own army to 100,000 men after taking Chahar.

It's a pity that we underestimated the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Eighth Route Army.

It turns out that no one in this world is famous for nothing.

The Jin-Cha-Ji Eighth Route Army gained a stellar reputation during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, and it certainly wasn't fake. The 35th Army had fought the Jin-Cha-Ji First Brigade for several days in Zhuozi, and had a deep understanding of the First Brigade's combat effectiveness. However, now was not the time to be gloomy. Dong Qiwu immediately asked, "Yi Gong, what should we do now? Should we reorganize in Guisui for a while, or evacuate Guisui?"

Fu Zuoyi's previous plan was to withdraw all the troops back to Guisui.

Rest in Guisui and pin the troops to Guisui. But now the troops have suffered a crushing defeat and their morale is completely gone. Whether they can hold Guisui is a question.

Fu Zuoyi nodded and said, "What do you think?

Fu Zuoyi realized that he had just lost his composure. As a general leading troops in battle, this shouldn't happen. Fu Zuoyi, a general with many years of experience in battle, quickly began to adjust his state.

Dong Qiwu said, "Duke Yi, I think we should withdraw."

"Tell me what you think."

"Yigong, we all know that Chiang Kai-shek wasn't that generous, and our Commander Yan was also very stingy. This time, Chiang Kai-shek gave Yigong the position of commander-in-chief of the 12th War Zone, and even handed over the northern Shanxi region to Yigong. I don't know how angry Commander Yan was. However, Yigong had won a series of victories before, so he couldn't say anything or do anything.