Songhu: Never Give Up

Chapter 41 Enemy and Our Strategy
Kyoto, Imperial Palace

The war in North China made Yuren very excited. He wished he could fight in person. The dream of a thousand years was just around the corner. He couldn't wait to conquer the whole of China.

Everyone knows what Yuhito is thinking, and the new Prime Minister Konoe Fumimaro sees it even more clearly. He brings Yuhito the news that he is most looking forward to.

"Your Majesty, the five-minister meeting of the headquarters has agreed on the "Navy Operation Plan against China", which is divided into two phases:
In the first phase, we will cooperate with the army in the North China Campaign;

The second phase will be to conduct operations in Shanghai with the cooperation of the army, and then expand the war to central and southern China.

Yu Ren nodded with satisfaction and said:

"Konwei-kun, the decision to spread the war to Central and Southern China is correct, but it is far from enough. What I want is the whole of China and even the world!

What about the Army, what plans do you have for conquering East China?"

Konoe Fumimaro was well prepared, and when Yuren asked, he bowed and said:
"The General Staff has already drawn up the Operational Plan against China and is awaiting your Majesty's ruling.

The 4th Army occupied Shanghai, and the newly formed 10th Army landed in Hangzhou Bay. The two armies coordinated in their battle towards Nanjing to occupy and secure the Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Nanjing triangle area.

The headquarters believed that it was not enough to occupy North China alone. The ruling center of the Huaxia government was in East China. As long as Shanghai, Nanjing and the entire East China were occupied, their external connections could be cut off.
The army and the people lost their will to fight, forcing the Huaxia government to surrender as soon as possible."

Yuren was not in a hurry to express himself, but continued to ask:

"What is the opinion of the Third Fleet stationed in Shanghai?"

"Your Majesty, Mr. Hasegawa recently submitted to the headquarters an "Opinion on the Use of Military Forces in the War against China," and he believed that if China was to be put to death, it was most important to control Shanghai and Nanjing. He suggested sending no less than five divisions of troops to fight the Battle of Beijing and Shanghai and capture Shanghai and Nanjing."

Yu Ren's face once again showed a relieved smile. Since everyone from top to bottom wanted to start a war in East China, he could make a decision accordingly. He glanced at Konoe Fumimaro and said:
"Yoshi, great minds think alike. I have no objection to the headquarters' East China combat plan. Just go ahead and do it!
We need to be more open-minded. Conquering Shanghai is only the first step. What I want is the whole of China, and even the world."

Konoe Fumimaro prostrated himself on the ground excitedly, cheered loudly, and then left ambitiously. He was confident that three months would be enough to conquer the Chinese base!
Jinling, the National Government's combat command center, is home to many generals. The rapid decline of the war in North China has made the atmosphere in the air chamber a little depressing.

The Japanese were sharpening their knives, and the top leaders of the Nationalist government were not in a daze. As early as after the end of the First Battle of Songhu, the Nationalist government, in view of Shanghai's strategic position, began to prepare to build a national defense line to prevent the Japanese from invading from Shanghai again, and formulated the "National Defense Operation Plan";
The Standing Committee Chairman even issued an instruction that the first priority during wartime should be to work hard to manage the Yangtze River Basin and control the Longhai Railway.

As the Japanese invaders pressed forward in North China, the National Government also realized that the two sides would inevitably have a war, so the military committee prepared a "National Defense Operation Plan":
It was proposed to designate the nine provinces on the front line of the national resistance against Japan as resistance zones, and to set up six defense zones;

The Beijing (Jinling) Shanghai-Hangzhou area was identified as a key area for defense, and Tang Mengxiao, director of the Military Commission's Training General Directorate, was responsible for planning and carrying out the plan. The Beijing-Shanghai-Hangzhou area was further divided into three areas, namely the Jinling Division, the Shanghai-Hangzhou Division, and the Beijing-Shanghai Division, which were respectively led by Gu Zhenglun, the commander of the Capital Garrison, Zhang Xianghua, the commander of the Jiangsu-Zhejiang Border Region at the time, and Zhang Wenhe, the director of the Central Military Academy's Education Department.

The fortifications in the three districts were constructed in phases. By the eve of July 3, the permanent fortifications in the main positions were basically completed according to the planned schedule.
In addition, small fortresses were built in Zhapu and Yanpu on the waterway, and necessary reinforcements and improvements were made to the Jiangyin fortress. The scope of the fortress was expanded to the vicinity of Changshan and Dingshan, and cannons were placed.

Air defense, communication, anti-gas, command, shelters and ammunition depots were also set up near the fortress.

In short, a lot of pre-war preparations were made, but Chairman Chang still had some illusions about peace, and he would not easily go to war with the Japanese unless it was absolutely necessary.

"Everyone, we have reached a point where we can no longer retreat. The terrain in North China is not conducive to defense, and the mechanized forces of the Japanese army can march straight in. In order to reduce the combat pressure in North China and lead part of the main force of the Japanese army to East China, the Military Commission has decided to fight a decisive battle with the enemy in Shanghai!
You are all capable generals of the government, please tell us how to fight. "

Zhang Wenhe, the person in charge of the Beijing-Shanghai Division, was the first to speak out:
"Since we have to fight, we should strike first and send out our elite divisions before the Japanese reinforcements arrive to annihilate or drive all the Japanese Navy Special Marines stationed in Shanghai into the sea, so as to avoid fighting on two fronts."

The others echoed, and the Standing Committee Chairman looked at General Bai, who was known as the "Little Zhuge" and said:

"Brother Jiansheng, what's your opinion?"

Bai Jiansheng would not be a follower, so he just waited for his general to be called, so he stood up and said:
"The strategy of striking first is correct, but we must be prepared for a massive Japanese invasion. According to the intelligence the Military Commission has, it is a foregone conclusion that the Japanese will send a large number of troops to Songhu, and the total force will not be less than 30."

Everyone was shocked after hearing this. Chen Shanghai, who was known as the Little Chairman, even stood up and questioned:

"Brother Jiansheng, you are exaggerating. In the last Battle of Songhu, the Japanese army only deployed 10 troops with the whole country's strength.
As the saying goes, food and fodder must be sent before troops move. Can the Japanese army keep up with the supply of 30 troops in the short term? "

"Brother Ci Xiu raised a good question. It is obviously not possible to take the land route. Not to mention supply, even if we just mobilize 30 troops, it would be impossible.
But don't forget that Japan has a huge navy. The supplies carried by a 30-ton transport ship are enough to support the combat needs of troops for a week. They have more than ten such transport ships.
Therefore, the Japanese army did not have to worry about supply issues when fighting along the coast of East China. On the contrary, it was not easy for the Nationalist government to mobilize hundreds of thousands of troops to fight, and the main forces were scattered across the country.

My opinion is to make plans in advance and mobilize the whole country, mobilize the corresponding combat forces and materials, and avoid using the tactic of adding fuel to the fire. "

General Chen wanted to argue, but the chairman of the Standing Committee raised his hand to stop him. He had already made up his mind, and everyone stood up and listened to his orders:
"Everyone, the battle in Shanghai is inevitable. Brother Wenhe will lead the Beijing-Shanghai Garrison Army to Shanghai today and launch a siege against the Japanese troops stationed in Shanghai. We will immediately try to annihilate the enemy in a short time or drive them into the sea. Order Song Yinguo's 36th Division stationed in Xi'an to rush to Shanghai and be under the unified command of Wenhe.

The Military Commission will come up with a plan for the Battle of Songhu in the near future. I have decided to mobilize heavy troops to open up a second battlefield in East China..."

(End of this chapter)