While the two were talking, a signal soldier rushed from afar, panting and saluting Zhang Xinghan and reported: "Commander, here we come, the enemy is here."

Zhang Xinghan looked excited when he heard this, and said to Guo Zhong: "Let brothers get ready."

"Yes." Guo Zhong immediately took the order and left. Not long after, a continuous and intensive gunfire was heard in Wagang Town, two kilometers away, sometimes accompanied by deafening explosions.

"Quick, quick, speed up." On the road one kilometer away from the Northeastern Army's ambush site, the dense sound of gunfire and explosions could already be heard in Wagang Town ahead, the officer of Huang Jie's command hurriedly urged

subordinates.

"General, the enemy's march is very long. We only need to cut them off at the waist. They will be unable to see each other from head to tail, and the formation will be in chaos. We can easily defeat them." Behind the slope, Guo Zhong looked at the telescope for a while.

He said to Zhang Xinghan.

If the opponent was the Japanese army, Zhang Xinghan would not hesitate to order the tank troops to block both sides and break through in the middle, trying to annihilate this unit in one fell swoop.

But they are ***, the best group of soldiers in China at the moment. All they lack are advanced weapons and equipment and tactical command.

Of course, Zhang Xinghan would not kill them. It would be enough to defeat them, destroy their combat power, and make them unable to reinforce the Puyang battlefield in a short period of time.

Therefore, Zhang Xinghan completely followed Guo Zhong's suggestion and immediately issued the order to attack.

About one regiment plus three guard battalions, the infantry of the reconnaissance battalion suddenly opened fire from the ambush bunkers on both sides of the road.

Two tank regiments came from the direction of Wagang Town and were suddenly attacked and ambushed. The officers and soldiers of the 2nd Division were caught off guard. However, their officers still tried to save the situation and directed their men to launch a counterattack towards the ambush positions on both wings.

However, they encountered intensive firepower and failed miserably.

At this time, hundreds of tanks and chariots rumbled along the road, and countless ordinary soldiers of the 2nd Division were terrified. No longer listening to the officers' orders, they turned around and fled, and they were defeated like a mountain.

When Huang Jie, who was at the rear of the army, was suddenly ambushed, he shouted that he had been fooled and immediately ordered the rear team to change to the front team to escape towards Tangyin County, and at the same time ordered the vanguard regiment to block the rear.

But unfortunately, after his vanguard regiment was ambushed by fierce firepower from the Northeastern Army, it was also charged by a large number of tanks and chariots of the Northeastern Army.

At this time, the army was completely in chaos. The infantry could not find its officers, and the officers were unable to organize effective command.

Those who run slowly just throw away their weapons and kneel on the ground with their hands raised in surrender. Those who run fast speed up and run on the road towards them.

Huang Jie's orders were simply not implemented.

Although Huang Jie's troops are the elite of the Central Army, they are still far from being fully mechanized. How could most of the soldiers outrun the Northeastern Army's car wheels and tanks with their feet?

Half an hour later, two more tank regiments came out of the diagonal spurs on the road, cutting the main force of Huang Jie's 2nd Division into three sections. At the same time, the pursuing Northeast Army troops also arrived.

The main force of the 2nd Division, blocked between two tank regiments, was trapped in a tight siege, with division commander Huang Jie among them.

On the contrary, the division's baggage, artillery and other directly-affiliated troops who were originally following behind fell into the encirclement and escaped by chance.

Faced with 300 Panzer IV tanks and thousands of soldiers, they were besieged like wolves and tigers. The main force of the 2nd Division, including the division headquarters, was quickly depleted. Except for a few casualties, most of them became prisoners of the Northeastern Border Guards.

As the commander of the 2nd Division, Huang Jie took advantage of the chaos on the battlefield and escaped with his own life.

Tangyin County, 17th Army Headquarters

After Huang Jie led his troops to set off, Xu Tingyao ordered people to send electricity to Tang Enbo and Guan Linzheng, urging the 4th Division and the 25th Division to come as soon as possible.

After marching all night, Xu Tingyao stayed up all night. But he was still full of energy and was thinking about the battle plan around the map.

An adjutant poured him a cup of hot water and brought it over, saying with concern: "Military, you haven't slept a wink all night. Do you want to take a rest?"

Xu Tingyao took the hot water, took a sip and said, "No, I'm not tired yet. The war in Puyang is urgent, so it's appropriate to work harder."

The adjutant nodded and stepped aside.

Suddenly, there was a burst of rapid and chaotic footsteps outside.

Xu Tingyao, who was drinking water, stopped. Looking up, he saw two unkempt officers running in, covered in blood and dressed in ragged clothes.

The two of them were walking quickly and staggering unsteadily. When Xu Tingyao saw this, he suddenly felt something was wrong and his heart couldn't help but tighten.

"Huh? It's Captain Wang of the 2nd Division's Baggage Brigade." The adjutant next to him knew one of the lieutenant colonels and asked, "What happened to Captain Wang? Why are you here?"

The lieutenant colonel surnamed Wang came to Xu Tingyao, knelt down on the ground with his companion, and said with a cry: "Military seat, we were ambushed by the Northeast Army. The troops were scattered. The division

You are also trapped in a tight siege, and your life and death are unknown."

"What??" Even though he was mentally prepared, Xu Tingyao was still shocked. The 2nd Division was trapped in a tight siege? Even Huang Jie's life or death was unknown? How is this possible?

In disbelief, Xu Tingyao immediately asked: "Where were you attacked? General Huang Jie has experienced hundreds of battles, how could he be so careless and fall into an ambush by the Northeast Army?"

Captain Wang cried bitterly and reported to Xu Tingyao in detail how the 2nd Division was deceived and ambushed.

After hearing this, Xu Tingyao felt a little dazed. The Northeast Army was really cunning and difficult to deal with.

While feeling heartbroken, Xu Tingyao suddenly remembered something and said in confusion: "Our army's secret southern transfer is a top-secret military order. Why would the Northeastern Army know so much about our whereabouts in advance?"

The adjutant next to him also had a look of surprise on his face and said, "What do you mean, the military commander, is there a traitor within us?"

Xu Tingyao nodded and said: "This possibility cannot be ruled out."

"It's hateful that such an important military secret order was leaked out so easily, causing the entire 2nd Division to be wiped out. It's really hateful." Xu Tingyao gritted his teeth and said.

"Army, the 4th Division and the 25th Division have just arrived in Handan. Now the 2nd Division has been completely wiped out. It's too dangerous for the Army here. We'd better evacuate as soon as possible." The adjutant suddenly became nervous and hurriedly reminded.

You don't need to think about it to know that it is impossible to completely wipe out the 10,000 people in the 2nd Division. Many people must have surrendered and become prisoners. These people may give away the news about Xu Tingyao in Tangyin County at any time.

Once it was learned that Xu Tingyao's military headquarters was in Tangyin and there were not many troops around him, even a fool on the opposite side of the Northeastern Army would know what action to take.

However, the adjutant's reminder was still a step too late. It can also be said that the Northeast Border Guard's Secret Bureau's intelligence was one step ahead of them.

Before planning to ambush Huang Jie's 2nd Division, Zhang Xinghan learned important information about Xu Tingyao's military headquarters in Tangyin County through members of the Secrecy Bureau hidden in Tangyin.

So ambushing Huang Jie was only part of his battle plan.

As soon as the adjutant finished speaking, another officer rushed in from the outside with a panicked expression.

Before saluting, he shouted: "Military seat, what's wrong, suddenly a large number of Northeastern Army tanks appeared outside the city, and we are surrounded."

"What?" Xu Tingyao was shocked and the water cup in his hand fell to the ground with a clang. The ceramic iron jar fell with a bang, and the outer enamel paint shattered on the ground.

The adjutant was shocked when he heard this, and quickly asked the visitor: "How many enemies are there? Why didn't the guard posts we arranged outside the city give a warning in advance? The enemy actually came to the city like this."

The visitor said with a gloomy face: "Several security posts were probably killed by the Northeastern Army, otherwise it would be impossible for them not to notice at all."

The adjutant's face was livid with anger, and he turned to Xu Tingyao: "Military, what should we do? Should we quickly order reinforcements from the 4th Division and the 25th Division?"

Xu Tingyao fell into silence. As an experienced veteran, Xu Tingyao certainly wanted Tang Enbo and Guan Linzheng to come immediately for reinforcements.

But there are two difficult problems before him now. The first is whether Zhang Xinghan will repeat his old tricks and use Xu Tingyao's military headquarters as a bait to encircle but not attack, inducing him to urge the 4th and 25th Divisions to catch up.

They came to reinforce, but they set up an ambush in the middle to eat the two last remaining troops of the 17th Army.

The second is, even if I order Tang Enbo and Guan Linzheng to immediately go south for reinforcements, can the guard battalion around me and the thousands of Tangyin County security teams be able to withstand the fierce attacks of the Northeast Army and persist until the end of the day?

Are reinforcements coming?

These two points, Xu Tingyao's military life, he thought of in an instant.

But now he was in a dilemma. By not allowing the 4th Division and the 25th Division to come for reinforcements, he could avoid the risk of an ambush, but Xu Tingyao himself would be in danger.

Whether he was captured or committed suicide, Xu Tingyao was unwilling to face it. After all, he was also a human being, not a god. He was also afraid of death, and he did not want to be a prisoner of Zhang Xinghan. This was not only about his dignity as a soldier, but also about his dignity as a soldier.

It is related to your future future and reputation.

Having followed Chairman Chiang for many years, he knew very well that although Chairman Chiang liked capable loyal ministers and good generals, he was also extremely suspicious.

It is not difficult to imagine that once he was captured, it would not be so easy to gain such respect from Chairman Chiang in the future.

Seeing that Xu Tingyao was silent, the adjutant was as anxious as an ant on a hot pot, pacing back and forth, urging: "Military seat, don't hesitate, quickly order Tang Enbo and General Guan Linzheng to reinforce quickly. In any case, the military seat is for the three armies."

First of all, your safety is more important than anything else."

Xu Tingyao, who was in a dilemma, did not realize that what his adjutant said was that he was the commander of the 17th Army and the leader of the three armies.

Even if he does not allow Tang Enbo, Guan Linzheng, Du Yuming and others to take risks to save him, once he is captured or dies, it will inevitably cause a serious blow to the morale of other units of the entire 17th Army.

Leaderless and fearful of the Northeastern Army, Tang Enbo and Guan Linzheng, who do not know what is true or false, are likely to adopt a wait-and-see attitude.

Therefore, the outcome of this battle was already determined from the moment Zhang Xinghan led his troops to surround Xu Tingyao. Zhang Xinghan solved the possible interference of the 17th Army on his combat plan, and there was no need to worry about it. (To be continued...
Chapter completed!