Chapter 148 Encircle and Strike

Lin Fan gestured on the map, ordering Zhang Zizhong to be summoned.

Riding his warhorse and protected by over a hundred guards, Zhang Zizhong quickly arrived.

Inside Lin Fan's command post in Pingluo Village, he saw a simple sand table.

Lin Fan introduced, "Commander! We are currently fifteen li away from the main force of the Japanese army!

The Japanese have already set up camp in Xingwan."

Seeing the close proximity of the two sides on the sand table, Zhang Zizhong immediately understood Lin Fan's idea: "Brigade Commander Lin, are you planning a night raid?"

"That's right!"

"Tonight, I want to give these Japanese a surprise greeting!"

"How do you need us to cooperate?" Zhang Zizhong took the initiative to volunteer.

"I plan to begin artillery preparation against the Japanese in Xingwan at five o'clock tomorrow morning. An hour later, it will be dawn.

At that time, our army's planes can be put to good use. At six o'clock, we will launch an attack on the Japanese.

I think there's no need to leave the Japanese in Luying Town. When we launch our attack tomorrow,

I hope Commander Zhang can wipe out the Japanese in Luying Town, and then the entire army will follow up. We will continue to 'encircle and strike reinforcements' in Xingwan!"

"Again? But I like it!" Commander Zhang was surprised, but still expressed his support for Lin Fan's plan.

He now believed that he had become an abandoned pawn of the Fifth War Area!

Feeling somewhat disheartened, he couldn't help but want to get closer to Lin Fan.

He also knew that Commander Chang did not get along well with the Special Operations Brigade!

Moreover, Commander Chang's attitude towards the 59th Army was not much better. Since the Battle of Xuzhou, the 59th Army had fought countless major and tough battles, but the replenishment of soldiers and weapons was not in place.

This time, it was only with Lin Fan's support that a large number of artillery pieces and machine guns were finally replenished.

Lin Fan said with a smile, "I have good news for Commander Zhang: there is a Japanese field artillery regiment in Xingwan."

Zhang Zizhong's breathing became heavy: "You mean to give us those cannons?"

"Of course! After all, my troops no longer need Japanese weapons! This time, there are twelve 150mm howitzers, twelve 150mm cannons, and twelve 70mm field guns.

In the past, brothers turned against each other for the position of Director of the Chahar-Suiyuan Pacification Office, and for the sake of adding two more regiments to each division.

He was also tricked by the Japanese and traitors on the issue of Beiping. Commander Zhang is in pain!

But he never said it, not to outsiders! Nor to insiders, just silently enduring it.

In the past two years, Commander Zhang has always been the first in every battle, always charging at the forefront, and has always had the determination to repay the country with his death.

Thinking of this, Zhang Shengyan said, "Commander! Is this Lin Fan really that good?"

"Too little contact, I dare not say in other aspects! On the issue of resisting Japan, his opinion is completely consistent with mine."

Zhang Zizhong returned to the 59th Army headquarters and convened officers above the regimental level to formulate a combat plan.

Lin Fan also convened a military meeting of officers above the company level in Pingluo Village: This time, the number of Japanese troops was four thousand more than that of the Special Operations Brigade.

However, among the thirteen thousand Japanese troops, many were not combat personnel. Many Japanese soldiers were logistics soldiers such as supply and engineering units.

The number of Japanese troops with real combat power would not be much more than the nine thousand men of the Special Operations Brigade.

This time, Lin Fan wanted to fight a "surround three, leave one open" strategy!

He left the direction for the Japanese to escape towards Pingluo Village and Luying Town.

The Eighth Regiment would still insert itself into the east of Xingwan to completely block the Japanese army's escape route to Tanghe, not letting a single Japanese soldier escape;

At the same time, the Eighth Regiment would also prepare to intercept reinforcements from the Third Division and other Japanese troops coming from the direction of Tanghe.

The Sixth and Seventh Regiments launched an attack on the Japanese army from both flanks, striving to make the Japanese army move and annihilate them in motion.

For the Special Operations Brigade, the fifty li road from Xingwan to Luying Town was their home field.

Several regiments of the Special Operations Brigade had already thoroughly familiarized themselves with the road.

When the Japanese army fled all the way and rushed to Luying Town in a panic, the 59th Brigade had already annihilated the Japanese troops in Luying Town.

They were waiting leisurely for the Japanese army to come and throw themselves into the net.

The plan was complete, and what remained was execution.

For the three regiments of the Special Operations Brigade, it was simply too easy to infiltrate fifteen li of road in one night.

Even if the Eighth Regiment needed to infiltrate behind the Japanese army, one night would be enough.

At the meeting, each company was familiar with its tasks, and each went down to begin their actions.

Division Commander Yamawaki Masataka in Tanghe was very concerned about the situation of the 5th Brigade under his command. Knowing that Major General Katayama Riichiro had not advanced rashly, but was resting fifty li away from Luying Town.

He greatly praised his steadiness, but Division Commander Yamawaki Masataka still urged Brigade Commander Katayama Riichiro to be careful of a night raid by the Special Operations Brigade.

The Japanese 5th Infantry Brigade, in order to cope with the night raid by the Special Operations Brigade, specially built a defensive line around the outside of the camp, with an infantry company on guard in each direction.

Chiang Kai-shek, in Chongqing, the provisional capital, received a battle report from Zhang Zizhong of the 59th Army. The battle report stated that the 4th Cavalry Brigade of the Japanese army had been completely annihilated, and at the same time, most of the 29th Infantry Brigade of the Japanese army had been destroyed.

Now, only less than a thousand Japanese troops remained, surrounded in Luying Town, to implement the "encircle and strike reinforcements" plan.

Receiving this news, Chiang Kai-shek looked at the situation on the map, and the worries that had kept him from eating and sleeping well for the past few days finally eased somewhat.

The emergency plan urgently formulated by the headquarters a few days ago could be abandoned.

The total strength of the Japanese army's sudden attack this time was only the entire Third Division, part of the Thirteenth and Sixteenth Divisions, plus the Fourth Independent Cavalry Brigade, totaling less than 50,000 men.

However, it had defeated the 250,000 men of the Fifth War Area, causing them to retreat steadily and lose cities and territories all the way.

Now it was different. In Luying Town, the Special Operations Brigade and the 59th Army had annihilated tens of thousands of Japanese troops, which was equivalent to annihilating a quarter of the Japanese army's expeditionary force this time.

"No wonder the Japanese have been retreating rapidly these days. They have abandoned Nanyang and are still retreating!

It turns out that the Japanese have encountered big trouble in the rear."

Chiang Kai-shek was so excited that his face turned red, and then he loudly ordered: "Order the Fifth War Area and the First War Area to pursue in coordination! We must compress the Japanese army back."

He really didn't want to mention the Special Operations Brigade anymore.

Li Zongren, Commander of the Fifth War Area, was undoubtedly in a very good mood.

Although the Fifth War Area did not fight well in the first ten days of this campaign, he released the fierce tiger of the Special Operations Brigade and invited Lin Fan out.

Didn't the situation change all of a sudden?

Brigade Commander Katayama Riichiro first informed these Japanese troops of the unfortunate news that the 4th Cavalry Brigade had been completely annihilated due to its rash advance.

He reminded all Japanese soldiers to be sure to follow the orders and arrangements of the brigade commander, and under no circumstances should they act alone.

At the same time, he pointed out the marching plan for tomorrow on the map: Tomorrow, the brigade headquarters would be established in Pingluo Village;

All four field hospitals of the brigade would be set up in Pingluo Village;

The 3rd Field Artillery Regiment would set up artillery positions between Pingluo and Houtianhuang Village;

The infantry would advance to Houtianhuang Village and Qiantianhuang Village to establish a defensive line, and launch an attack on the Nationalist army besieging Luying Town the day after tomorrow.

His plan this time strived for stability!

And it was indeed stable, so stable that it was a bit excessive.

Regiment Commander Kuranaga Tatsuji of the 6th Infantry Regiment asked loudly: "Brigade Commander! What if the Nationalist army breaks through Luying Town during this period?

What about Regiment Commander Ishii Kaho and Regiment Commander Inoue Hachiro?"