103: Chapter 103 The Japanese are going crazy! 100,000 troops!!

Mentioning Okamura made the expressions of The Chiefs in the room even more serious.

"This man is not Tada Shun. His methods for dealing with us will likely be harsher and more vicious than Tada Shun's 'Cage Policy'!"

Tada Shun's downfall had made them feel slightly relieved, but Okamura, who had taken over, was undoubtedly a stronger, more familiar with China, and more difficult opponent.

This man had arrived during the Beiyang Government era!

He had even been a member of President Li's advisory group!

Finally, the Deputy Commander spoke slowly: "No matter what new tricks he uses, retaliation is certain! And the first to bear the brunt will definitely be He County!"

Future matters can be considered in the future.

The problem now is He County!

"The Japanese want to recover the substance and face they lost from here! This is a nail they must pull out, and it will be the sacrificial battle they use to restore their prestige!"

The Deputy Commander's gaze became sharp: "And we must absolutely not let He County fall! Especially the arsenal there! There is no room for error!"

"Send a telegram to the Brigade Commander immediately!"

"Inform them of the current grim situation and point out clearly that the Japanese Army, especially after Okamura took office, will inevitably launch an unprecedentedly massive and crazy offensive against He County."

"Order them: Relying on the existing new equipment and favorable terrain, they must make the fullest defensive preparations!"

"The Independent Regiment and related support units must enter the highest state of combat readiness! At the same time, look for combat opportunities while on the move, and never let the Japanese easily form an encirclement!"

"Yes!" The Communications Staff Officer recorded the order.

"In addition, telegraph all brother units," the Deputy Commander continued to deploy, "Inform them of the situation and require all units to be vigilant, strengthen reconnaissance, and closely monitor the movements of the Japanese Army in front of them."

"Once the war breaks out in the direction of He County, all units must, according to the actual situation, harass and contain the Japanese forces and fully support the defense of He County!"

"Tell all commanders and fighters," the Deputy Commander's gaze swept over every Leader, "The mountain city wants to watch us and the Japanese fight until both sides suffer, and the Japanese want to use our heads to sacrifice their military flags, but we will not let them get their wish!"

"This battle is not only to defend He County and the arsenal, but also to show the people of the whole country, and to show those who have ulterior motives!"

"Our Eighth Route Army has backbone, and even more so the ability to fight hard battles and win! No matter how fierce the Japanese are, don't even think about easily chewing through this hard bone of ours!"

The Leaders stood up one after another and replied loudly:

"Yes!"

"We will never let the enemy get their wish!"

...

Three days later.

He County, 386th Brigade Frontline Command and Independent Regiment Headquarters.

The Brigade Commander, Li Yunlong, Zhao Gang, and others were all present.

The room was filled with smoke, and the atmosphere was even heavier than the smoke.

A rough but huge military map was spread out on a table made of door panels, covered with dense red and blue arrows and unit symbols.

The Brigade Commander stood in front of the map with his hands behind his back, remaining silent for a long time.

Li Yunlong stared with his bull-like eyes, fixated on the three thick red arrows on the map pointing to He County from different directions, the muscles on his cheeks twitching.

After receiving the order from the headquarters, He County and the surrounding units quickly entered a first-level combat readiness state.

Other intelligence was also being summarized one after another.

Zhao Gang took a deep breath, his voice dry: "According to intelligence, the main force of the 36th Division has finished assembling in Jinan, the 37th Division is in City Name, and the 3rd Independent Mixed Brigade is in Jincheng."

"In addition, the 3rd Aviation Brigade in Taiyuan is also mobilizing..."

"Damn it..." Li Yunlong finally couldn't help it and slammed his fist on the edge of the table.

"Those Japanese bastards have really gone all out! Two divisions! And an independent mixed brigade! Has that Shinozuka Kazuo emptied out the entire foundation of his First Army?"

You have to know, the First Army in Shanxi Province only has three divisions and four independent brigades in total.

This time, Shinozuka Kazuo has mobilized almost half of the mobile forces he can use in Shanxi Province.

Just the Japanese Soldiers alone number between sixty and seventy thousand.

Plus the Puppet Army who will definitely assist...

Zhao Gang smiled bitterly: "Around our He County, the total strength of the enemy gathering is, I'm afraid... no less than 100,000!"

"100,000..." A staff officer beside him gasped.

"Our Independent Regiment, counting everyone, plus the new recruits, He County brigade, and district squads absorbed during this period, can pull at most five thousand people to the front line... This..."

A ratio of nearly twenty to one, or even thirty to one!

Even with the various new weapons sent by Shen Wang, this number still made everyone unable to breathe!

The Brigade Commander turned around slowly, his face showing unprecedented solemnity.

He took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose hard.

Even with his courage and insight, facing such a lopsided troop ratio and the enemy's crazy determination, he felt immense pressure.

He thought the Japanese would be crazy, but he didn't expect them to be this crazy!

"The Headquarters Leaders judged correctly," the Brigade Commander put his glasses back on, "The Japanese want to swallow us whole, skin and bones, and use our blood to wash their lost flag!"

Li Yunlong stiffened his neck: "Brigade Commander! Soldiers come, block with generals; water comes, cover with earth! At worst, we'll fight to the death!"

"Old Li!" Zhao Gang stopped him, "We can't be reckless! This isn't a problem that can be solved just by risking our lives! Even if there were 100,000 pigs standing there for us to kill, our hands would get tired!"

"How about... we retreat into the mountains and fight guerrilla warfare?" a staff officer suggested.

"No!"

The Brigade Commander rejected it without even thinking.

"This is not just a county town! We have our nearly completed arsenal here! And the various new weapons sent by Mr. Shen!"

"These... must never fall into the hands of the Japanese!"

If the Japanese got the 99A, Type 56 assault rifles, 107mm rockets, Proximity Fuze...

The Brigade Commander couldn't even imagine what would happen!

"Notify everyone, if it comes to the last resort, destroy all weapons!"

"That is the hard work of Mr. Shen, we must never let the Japanese get those weapons and equipment!"

Hearing the Brigade Commander's words, Li Yunlong also seemed like a punctured balloon, his momentum deflated, and he scratched his scalp irritably:

"Damn it... speaking of Mr. Shen, it's been almost a month, where on earth did Mr. Shen go? Why is there no news at all?"

Zhao Gang's face was also full of worry: "Yes, Mr. Shen said he would come back, but this time... could something have happened on the way?"

If there were still any miracles to happen, everyone could only pin their hopes on Shen Wang.

However, it had been a month, and Shen Wang seemed to have disappeared.

If he was just delayed by something, that would be fine, but if something unexpected happened...

This was probably even harder for everyone to accept than losing He County!

Just as the atmosphere in the command post was extremely oppressive and everyone was frowning—

"Report!"

The thick cotton curtain of the command post was suddenly lifted, and Wei the Monk strode in.

"Report to the Brigade Commander! Regiment Commander! Political Commissar! Shen... Mr. Shen! Mr. Shen is here! He's at the city gate!"