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The battle around Zhongtiao Mountain had already begun for several days. The Japanese were advancing with great force, constantly breaking through the defenses of the Tang army and occupying various military fortresses and important towns.

However, things gradually changed and the Japanese offensive gradually decreased.

The 388th Brigade had been besieging Linfen for nearly three days, and all the Japanese troops that could be mobilized in the surrounding area in a short period of time had been transferred here.

Unfortunately, these small forces were like a meat bun thrown at a dog, most of them never returned, and only a very small number escaped along the same route.

Originally, at the beginning, Liu Quanhua's combat order was to annihilate most of the troops, and then deliberately leave a small number of them to enter Linfen, so as to achieve a slow and steady approach.

However, the situation on the battlefield changes rapidly and unexpected changes may occur at any time. In addition, some companies and platoons were so anxious that they could not stop fighting.

At the beginning, we wiped out all the enemy Japanese and puppet army squads and companies, and gradually we started to target the battalion-sized forces.

Liu Quanhua knew that he could not stop the soldiers, so he simply gave an order, asking each unit to fight on their own. They could fight however they wanted as long as they could maintain the defense line and avoid casualties.

Otherwise, Liu Quanhua is said to be the madman of the 176th Division. If it were Wang Dafu, Wang Dafu might not give the order so quickly. He would hold a combat meeting and execute it after discussion.

The various units that were freed from their shackles were like jackals, tigers and leopards, and they inflicted heavy blows on the Japanese and puppet troops on their respective defense lines.

Over the past three days, tens of thousands of Japanese and puppet troops have died at the hands of the 3th Brigade.

But one thing has not changed, that is, the field artillery battalion still has not opened fire, they are waiting.

Hidden in the north of Linfen is the field artillery battalion of the 387th Brigade, waiting for the Japanese invaders from Taiyuan.

Hiding in the southern part of Linfen was the field artillery battalion of the 388th Brigade, waiting for the Japanese to join the battle in Zhongtiao Mountain.

As long as these two field artillery battalions open fire, it will mean that the siege and reinforcements are coming to an end, which also means that the Battle of Zhongtiao Mountain will be over.

Peking, the headquarters of the Japanese North China Front Army.

Tada Shun, the commander-in-chief of the Zhongtiaoshan Campaign, slammed his hand on the table and shouted, "What's wrong with the troops? Why haven't they reached the designated location in such a long time? They have lost their surprise. How can we fight the rest of the battle?"

The Japanese officer said: "Commander, this incident cannot be blamed on the frontline troops. Zhongtiao Mountain is easy to defend but difficult to attack. The attack of the imperial troops is difficult, and the logistics support is also very difficult. It's just that something went wrong in Linfen, which caused problems with the supplies to the northern and western fronts.

Although our army was well prepared and did not lack logistics for the time being, Linfen was our retreat route. With the retreat route cut off, the morale of the soldiers dropped, which led to the slow progress of the operation. "

Tada Shun: "It's Linfen again. Didn't we order the First Army to send troops to support and restore transportation on the Nantongpu Line as soon as possible?"

Japanese officer: "The First Army has done its best. Most of its troops and motor vehicles have been transferred to Zhongtiao Mountain to participate in the battle. The remaining troops have rushed to Linfen."

Tada Shun; "What kind of troops attacked Linfen?"

Japanese officer: "According to the intelligence we have collected, it is a regular army of the Tang Dynasty. Its military uniforms are not the Jin Army or the National Guard Army. It looks like a local army! The strength of the troops is about 4 regiments. The firepower is unheard of. There are dozens of mountain cannons, so the front support troops suffered heavy losses."

Tada Shun thought of something: "Didn't we receive a report not long ago that a Tang army had infiltrated the western part of Shanxi, causing huge losses to our empire!"

"Yes, that's the army that attacked Linfen!"

"You mean that unit? You mean that you still haven't figured out its number, so you definitely don't know who their commander is! As soldiers of the Empire, you have a perfect intelligence system. Is this how you work?"

Faced with Tada Shun's anger, everyone below broke out in cold sweats. No one wanted to go up and get into trouble at this time.

A moment later, Major General Yukio Kasahara, Chief of Staff of the North China Front Army, said: "Commander, the commander of the 114th Division, Numata Tokushige, has also reported the brief situation of the Tang army before. In short, its overall combat effectiveness is comparable to that of the two divisions of the Empire.

But now is not the time to discuss that army. Our top priority is to restore the Tongpu Line and alleviate the predicament in Zhongtiao Mountain.

Otherwise, I'm afraid the Jin army and the Guowei army will take advantage of the situation and cause trouble!"

Tada Shun: "What do you think?"

"I suggest that we suspend the offensive in Zhongtiao Mountain and switch to defense at the current scale, and transfer the 21st Division there from Yuncheng to the north to support Linfen.

At the same time, he ordered the 37th Division, which was rushing from Taiyuan to Linfen, to speed up its advance and cooperate with the 21st Division to carry out a counter-encirclement of the Tang Dynasty army in Linfen.

According to the report from Okisaburo Akiyama of the 127th Brigade, all the artillery of the Tang army was attacking the city, and the enemy did not seem to have large-caliber artillery, so they were unable to cause fatal damage to Linfen!

We must seize the time. It would be best if we can defeat this army. If we cannot, we can just drive them away. As long as the railway is restored, the various troops in Zhongtiao Mountain can continue to fight!"

"Okay!" Tada Shun immediately affirmed this plan: "If necessary, we can dispatch Yuncheng's 3rd Flight Group and send fighter jets to fight!"

.......

The Japanese gave orders very quickly, and the 21st Division quietly withdrew from the battle one after another that day. Such a big change naturally could not escape the attention of Commander Wei, the commander-in-chief of the Tang Army in Zhongtiao Mountain.

With the status and position of Commander Wei, he naturally knew that it was the Independent 176th Division that surrounded Linfen. He also knew from special channels that the Jin Army had purchased a lot of weapons from the 176th Division, and even he was jealous.

However, he did not report the matter to the Military Commission, and also implicitly informed Commander Yan of the Jin Army not to spread the news of the 176th Division selling arms.

But after all, he didn't know the actual combat effectiveness of the 176th Division. Now he was helpless and all he could do was not let the 176th Division down.

That night, he convened an emergency combat meeting and redeployed the operations, preparing to launch a counterattack against the Japanese while the 21st Division was transferred!

On September 9, the counterattack began. The weapons purchased by the Jin army from the 13th Division were no longer hidden, and they launched a fierce attack on the front line.

Although the firepower was doubled, the Japanese were well prepared after all. After a fierce battle, they only recovered a few unimportant places occupied by the Japanese, and the two sides fell into a white-hot battle.

After all, the Jin Army has limited ammunition, and they cannot be like the local rich men in the 176th Division, firing a few shots whenever they want!

Therefore, whether it was the Japs, the Shanxi Army, or the National Guard Army, they all turned their attention to Linfen, waiting to see the battle situation there.

Bozhuang 388th Brigade temporary command post.

"Commander, the report from the front line is that the Japanese we are waiting for have finally arrived. Japanese soldiers have arrived in Zhaoqu, south of the fork, one after another, and their strength exceeds that of a division.

The Japanese from Taiyuan also arrived at Ganting, north of Gaohedian, and their troop strength exceeded that of a division!

They seemed to be waiting to surround our brigade, but the devils didn't know that all their actions were seen by us!"