Just when the forces of all sides had their own plans, Tong lost the situation on November 3! However, this loss was not because the Japanese army succeeded in the attack, but because the Tongguan defenders took the initiative to retreat under the order of Hu Zongnan. {http:

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After nearly half a month of large-scale transport, the important materials accumulated in Guanzhong by the Eighth War Zone and the Shaanxi Provincial Government have basically been transferred to Hanzhong in southern Shaanxi and Bazhong in northern Sichuan. Most of the government agencies and local security forces have also left clean. After receiving a call from Zhu Shaoliang, Hu Zongnan decisively ordered the troops to retreat overnight on the evening of the 3rd!

"Brother Shoushan, there are dangerous mountains and rivers in Tongguan. Yan Xishan has sent artillery troops to Fenglingdu area these days, and shelled the Japanese army across the river to attack the opposite side. Although we are unable to counterattack at the moment, we can rely on the terrain to drag the war until heavy snow comes!" Dong Zhao, deputy commander-in-chief of the 34th Army and commander of the 16th Army, is from Chang'an, Shaanxi. He couldn't bear to see his hometown suffer from war.

"Brother Jiesheng, I know you are from Chang'an and I can't bear to see the elders of your hometown suffer from the war. I have been in Shaanxi for several years and have the same feelings for it. However, as soldiers, we must obey the orders!" Hu Zongnan patted Dong Zhao's shoulder and sighed, "You and I are both Huangpu Phase I. You have seen the principal call you before. If we really destroy the 34th Army here, not only will the Japanese soldiers still march into Guanzhong, but we will also lose the capital to stick to southern Shaanxi, and will also anger the principal for disobeying the orders. This is not you, I can afford to be guilty! Besides, we have been here for a lot of time, and there will be corresponding arrangements after retreating. This is nothing wrong with all parties!"

"Give up the dangerous situation in Tongguan, and then go west to Xi'an, there is no danger to defend!" Thinking that the Japanese were about to rage in their hometown, Dong Zhao felt sad in his heart. After shaking his head, he reminded, "But we just retreated like this. We didn't even want to fight Yan Xishan, which is a bit unreasonable!"

"Nothing is unreasonable!" Hu Zongnan snorted coldly and waved his hand, "Yan Xishan has the heavy troops of four armies. However, first Ren Jimu Zhenichi's 1st Army headed south, and then used various excuses to refuse the Central Committee's order to transfer troops from the Second World War Zone to join the front line of Tongguan. It is already a disadvantage for the Central Committee not to hold him accountable! Now the Shanxi Sui Army has attracted the attention of the Japanese army in the Fenglingdu area, which is conducive to our troops' retreat!"

Although Hu Zongnan and Dong Zhao were both disciples of Chiang Kai-shek, both from the first class of Huangpu, the disciples of the emperor were also divided into different levels. Hu Zongnan was a backbone of the Lixing Society and Fuxing Society, and was favored by Chiang Kai-shek Group for his past military achievements. Now he has become the "Crown Prince" of the Huangpu Group, and he has a slight strife with Chen Cheng, Tang Enbo and other factions. Although Dong Zhao was also trusted by Chiang Kai-shek, his status in various aspects was far inferior to Hu Zongnan. Now that Hu Zongnan has made up his mind and Chiang Kai-shek telegram as a proof, Dong Zhao could only nod his head in response.

According to Hu Zongnan's plan, the defenders on the Tongguan line would use the method of sequential resistance and alternate cover to retreat along the railway between Tongguan and Xi'an, and then "fighted" with the Japanese army in the Xi'an area. Then they would move to southern Shaanxi. While retreating, all relevant troops should timely destroy the railway and highway traffic behind them to prevent the Japanese chariots from chasing them at the same time. Among them, the remnants of the Third Army Sun Tongxuan's troops and other retreated war zones would retreat to southeastern Shaanxi through Lantian and Languan. They would join the 167th Division of the 1st Army who had already entered there, and the Tao Zhiyue troops of the 37th Army, which had just returned from northwestern Hubei to the 8th War Zone to defend the Luonan, Wuguan and Shangnan lines. Hu Zongnan led the 34th Army and other troops of the 8th War Zone to retreat from Xi'an to Zhashui, Zhen'an and other places in southern Shaanxi.

Xi'an is both the capital of a province and the headquarters of the Eighth War Zone. Hu Zongnan even wants to run away quickly, but he has to do a whole set of tricks. After all, Chiang Kai-shek, who had abandoned Jinan, for the crime of "retreatment without authorization", was removed from office and detained. Now the Chongqing authorities are claiming to the outside world that "decisive resistance against the enemy" and if Hu Zongnan directly moved from Tongguan to southern Shaanxi at this time, how could Chiang Kai-shek do it?

Although Hu Zongnan ordered the troops to retreat one after another, the news of the loss of Tongguan still shocked all walks of life in the country. 1(1) The first ones were the people in the pass and Yan Xishan, who believed that he had been "caught" by Hu Zongnan.

There was only more than 150 kilometers between Tongguan and Xi'an, and it was located in the Guanzhong Plain without any danger. Once Tongguan was lost, it would be not far from Xi'an. Out of fear of the brutality of the Japanese army, from Chaoyi, Dali, Huayin, near Tongguan to the east, to Xingping, Wugong and other places west of Xi'an, the people of Guanzhong began to flee in large numbers regardless of the increasingly bitter cold. Except for some people who were deeply affected by the ** and went to the northern Shaanxi border area, most people chose to go west to the Ministries controlled areas. After all, the slogan "There is a way to survive if you go to the northwest" is not in vain.

After Yan Xishan learned that Hu Zongnan had withdrawn without warning and abandoned Tongguan, he slapped the table in his command center and threw teacups to vent his vent despite his nearly sixty years old.

"I can't listen to Mr. Jiang's words, and his good students' words are also unhappy! I coaxed and deceived me to send artillery soldiers to support the north bank across the river. When we really went up, Hu Zongnan took the opportunity to escape! Isn't this obviously a disaster and ask us to push the tank for him?" Yan Xishan was so angry that his lips trembled, and he kept saying, "This is really a geese being pecked by geese all day long. It's unreasonable! It's unreasonable!"

Under the attack of Japanese counter artillery fire and air force, the Shanxi-Suizhou Army used railway maneuver and concealed in Fenglingdu area on the north bank of the Yellow River and shelled the two Japanese artillery regiments of Tongguan. The losses were nearly half! This made Yan Xishan really hurt.

The retreat of Hu Zong in the southern part made the Jinsui army, which originally restrained the Japanese army on the north bank of the Yellow River, stand out. Yan Xishan was worried that the Japanese army would adjust the attack direction after capturing Tongguan and attack southwest Shanxi.

"Before and after Hu Zongnan retreated, he didn't even say hello, and this thing was really inauthentic!" Zhu Shouguang shook his head and smiled bitterly, "Mr. Yan, the matter has come to this point, anger will only hurt the body and will not help. Now we should focus on the Yellow River more so that the Japanese army will take the opportunity to cross the river!"

Under the persuasion of Zhu Shouguang, Liang Huazhi and others, although Yan Xishan temporarily calmed down, he was too disgusted with the actions of Lao Jiang, Hu Zongnan and others. Coupled with the past experience of being beaten by Qiufeng, he became increasingly disinterested with Chongqing.

On the People's Party, after learning about the loss of Tongguan, Zhao Zhenzhong and others only proposed targeted arrangements for refugee assistance, resettlement and auxiliary issues after sending troops. As for the implementation of the combat plan, they have been determined and are only waiting to be launched.

"The battle is about to start. The resettlement of so many refugees is a big problem." In the face of emergencies, Zhao Zhenzhong said at the Standing Executive Committee of the People's Party, "I think this problem will be handled by Yun Yi, and the General Logistics Department will send people to cooperate. While solving the food and clothing problems of refugees from the West, we must do a good job in epidemic prevention and ensure that the relevant people have passed the winter safely. At the same time, the security department must increase the intensity of the review and find out the enemy's secret elements as much as possible! In addition, the second and third armies of the two groups ordered them to do a good job of concealment to ensure the suddenness of the battle's initiation!"

"There is no shortage of food and clothing, and medicine. But the housing for resettlement of refugees is not necessarily enough. The northwest has begun to freeze, and it is too late to build it now. I think that disaster relief tents can be used to resettle these people first. After our army recovers Guanzhong, we will organize people to return to their hometowns in batches. As long as we do not delay the spring plowing and purebred next year, there will be no major problems." After years of rescue and the experience of resettling victims, Tian Yunyi is very familiar with the work of rescuing and resettling victims at this time. He agreed and said. "Of course, if our army moves fast enough, most refugees should be able to return to their hometowns to celebrate the Spring Festival. In this way, we can also organize the people to carry out some farmland water conservancy construction or transportation construction at the beginning of next year, and complete the land allocation work."

"There is no problem with the hidden work of the two armies before the war. Although the troop assembly area is connected to the main line of the transportation line, the relevant locations are still a distance from the junction of Gansu and Shaanxi. In addition, the military forbidden zones have always been strictly prohibited from approaching others, so refugees will not go there." Seeing Zhao Zhenzhong looking at him, Zhou Mingyuan briefly explained the relevant work, "In addition, the General Logistics Department's engineering troops, led by Cheng Kaishan, and relevant personnel from the Railway Bureau, have also made repairs and used the Guanzhong Railway and road preparations to ensure smooth material transportation and smooth battle."

"Since we are all prepared, we will wait and see!" Zhao Zhenzhong smiled confidently, "I believe that as long as the 'blizzard' is together, the Japanese will be hard to bear this winter!"

Contrary to the expectations of Zhao Zhenzhong and others, after the army was commanding and seizing Tongguan in the early morning of the 4th, whether it was Yoshiki Sakiichi Yoshiki who were commanding and leaving each other with his own signs, or Okamura Yasuji and Hata Shunrok, who were in Peking and Nanjing, were all very happy about the progress of the Japanese army.

"If you take Tongguan, it is not far from Xi'an! However, Yoshimujun, according to the order of Commander Okamura, in order to ensure the safety of the newly occupied area and maintain pressure on southern Shaanxi, we can only enter Guanzhong with six divisions and chariot clusters." Tobashi smiled complacently at one time, "I have four divisions here, and you only have two divisions there. If the troops are insufficient at that time, I can call in time and I will provide tactical guidance as soon as possible."

"Hmph! Tuqiaojun, although our troops have only two divisions entering Guanzhong, don't forget that the chariot cluster is under my command!" Jimuzhen smiled disdainfully and said proudly, "By relying on the assault power of the chariot cluster, we are moving west along the south side of the Longhai Line, our troops will definitely enter Xi'an first!"

"If our troops hadn't headed north in time, Yoshimu Jun would have been stranded at Hangu Pass to this day!" Tuqiao curled his lips once and said, "If the commander hadn't handed over the chariot cluster to you, my troops would have been enough to sweep through Guanzhong!"

"Many times, good luck is also strength, which you can't envy!" Seeing Tuqiao eating taste, Yoshimuzhen laughed and said, "If Tuqiao is interested, how about you and I go to a bet match? Let's see who can enter Xi'an first? Who won more in Guanzhong?"

Tuqiao refused to enter the hub once, and just sneered: "Relying on the chariot cluster to run fast, it is not a skill!"

The two old Japanese devils, Shinichi Yoshimu and Tobashi, were not enemies, but they were used to seeing each other in the North China Front Army. Seeing that victory was in sight, they became determined to win again, and they both wanted to achieve great achievements in the battle of Guanzhong.

After some debate, Yoshimu Satoichi, in accordance with Okamura's order, led his 36th and 37th Divisions and chariot clusters to advance from the south of the Longhai Line to Xi'an; while Tobaki once led the 32nd and 35th Divisions under the 12th Army, the 3rd Division from the 11th Army, and the 15th Division from the 13th Army, and a total of four divisions advanced westward from the north of the Longhai Line.

Okamura Yasuji took great pains to deploy troops like this. As the commander of the front army, he naturally knew the signs of separation between the two commanders of his subordinates. However, as a superior, Okamura believed that as long as Yoshiki and Tobashi competed, the two men would not affect the combat operations, which would help the troops maintain an upbeat attitude.

During this battle, Tobashi's troops first took the lead in the Longhai Line area, and then rushed for a long distance. They controlled the important passage from southwest Henan to northwestern Hubei and southeastern Shaanxi, and led several divisions to attack Hangu Pass sideways, laying the foundation for the army to gather in Tongguan and the subsequent Guanzhong battle. In this case, Okamura Yasuji had to try to maintain Tobashi's momentum even if it was just to repay the merits. As for handing over the four divisions to Tobashi, it was Okamura who did it intentionally.

Although the troops of Shin-yi Yoshimu joined the battlefield in western Henan late, the troops' actions of crossing Henan and capturing Luoyang were extremely critical surprises. Moreover, before Tuqiao led his troops north from the Lu family to Hangu Pass, the troops of Yoshimu had always put pressure on the Chinese defenders on the Longhai line, which won valuable time for the heavy troops to gather in Tongguan later. In view of this, in addition to maintaining a balance between the two generals under his command, Okamura naturally would not abandon Yoshimu's troops. As for the grouping of chariots and commanding by Yoshimu, it was the balance method adopted by Okamura when the troops did not have the advantage.

In addition, the four divisions led by Tobashi for Guanzhong were also selected by Okamura. Among them, the two divisions of the 12th Army headquarters took into account the honor of the North China Front Army, while the 11th Army and the 13th Army each had one division involved in Guanzhong operations. There were both factors that Okamura thanked Yokoyama Yong, Shimomura's two army commanders and harmonious relationships with colleagues in the army, and also the consideration of Okamura's excellent combat effectiveness in the 3rd and 15th Divisions.

The 3rd Division was one of the permanent divisions of the Japanese army before the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, while the 15th Division was a three-way division organized in 38 years. Compared with the newly formed divisions after the outbreak of the Pacific War, the 3rd and 15th Divisions were undoubtedly much more combat-effective.

"Tongguan has been taken. It seems that before Andajun goes to Australia to take office, the imperial soldiers can successfully occupy Xi'an. This is a good result." After sending a call to Yoshimu Shikaichi and Tobashi, Okamura Yanji was happy but a little regretful. "If I could take Tongguan ten days in advance, I can take Andajun to Xi'an to appreciate the style of the ancient capital of Xiachina."

"Your Excellency has achieved this battle and has made another special merit for the empire!" He had received a telegram from the base camp and was about to go to New Guinea to form the 18th Army and to lead his troops to fight Australia. Although Anda 23, who was smiling, was also a little regretful in his words, "As long as the imperial soldiers can occupy Xi'an, I will go with you when I come back from Australia. Unfortunately, I can't listen to your views from time to time."

"It's not a question of special merit, it's just a bit of luck." Although Okamura showed some self-pride in his expression, he did not lose his sense of sanity, but said a little solemnly, "The Chinese Chongqing government forces will not cause any obstacles in Guanzhong, I can be sure of this. What I am worried about now is that before the front war ended, the People's Party's armed forces suddenly attacked North China from west and south. You must know that nearly half of the front army has invested in the Xi'an operation, and the troops in North China are really weak!"

Before this battle, the North China Front Army had a total of ten divisions and sixteen mixed brigades, and six divisions and two brigades were put into the battlefield of Henan and Shaanxi. If two brigades were added to the southeast of Shanxi, Yoshimu Shin-chi was left in the southeast of Shanxi to restrain Yan Xishan and the brigades, then Okamura Nishi now had only four divisions and twelve brigades. In the case of preventing the People's Army from advancing eastward to Hebei and Chaga, these brigades were far from enough to prevent the Guards from heading north to Hebei and Central Hebei and Pingjin.

If it is reasonable to say that at the beginning of the war, the Japanese army relied on the first-mover advantage to make a series of progress by taking advantage of the opportunity when the People's Party's armed forces had no time to mobilize, then it would be obvious that it would be a bit abnormal for nearly two months to fight in Henan and Shaanxi. The People's Party's armed forces have not taken action against North China, which seems empty in its troops! Especially as winter approaches, large and small rivers enter the dry season and are about to freeze, making it difficult for the North China Front Army to achieve success in flooding strategies for dealing with the People's Party's armed forces to achieve success, Okamura's worries are getting worse and worse.

"It is indeed suspicious that the People's Party's armed forces have not taken action so far. However, you don't need to worry too much. In another week, the Xi'an operation should end, and the front army can be transferred back to North China by railway or highway at any time. According to the current situation, the People's Party's armed forces have not changed at the junction, and the radio signal has not increased significantly. There is no possibility of large-scale action in the near future." Anda 23 is also a little worried about the current situation in North China, but still comforts

"Commander Meijin has deployed the 10th, 14th and 71st main divisions of the Kwantung Army on the front line from western Liaoning to Shanhaiguan, and can enter the pass to reinforce at any time. No matter how fast the People's Party armed forces act, they will never be able to occupy Pingjin every night. The front army has full time to make targeted arrangements! As for the east of Henan, although the guards may advance westward, there is a barrier to the Yellow Flood there, and the troops used by the Empire for combat in Xi'an can be transferred eastward in time along the Longhai Line, so there should be no major problems!"

After Anda 23 said this, Okamura calmed down a little, then nodded slightly, smiled a little on his face, and said, "I hope so."

At the junction of the same Japanese-occupied areas such as Suidong, northern Shanxi, northern Shandong, and central Hebei, the People's Party's armed forces did not make any abnormal moves, but in the rear where the Japanese army could not detect, the assembly sites connected to the front through highways, the People's Army and the Guards were ready to go and prepared to attack at any time.

As for the so-called increase and decrease of telecommunications signals, in addition to the northwest and the northwest, communications between Shandong must be carried out through telegrams. In the northwest and within the Shandong bureau’s control area, communication can basically be achieved through wired telephones. Moreover, military lines are dedicated lines, and specialized troops patrol from time to time, so it is inevitable that the Japanese army cannot detect the increase in telecommunications signals. (To be continued...)


Chapter completed!