sjar Chapter 1031 Cannon Fodder Troops
Chapter 1031 Cannon Fodder Troops
Captain Chong Teng was not even qualified to attend such a meeting. Although his detachment was organized into a brigade, no one in the Japanese battle sequence looked up to him and only regarded his troops as cannon fodder. He would only be remembered when cannon fodder was needed. Therefore, for such a high-level meeting, he could only wait in the lounge downstairs. Only if there was something to talk about him would the combat staff call him up.
General Shigeto never expected that while waiting for the news, he would be promoted for no reason, and was promoted from a ragtag army to a regular combat sequence. Although the 31st Division was newly formed and was not the original permanent division, judging from the number, it was still very advanced.
The most important thing is to make himself the commander-in-chief of the front line of Jinshanwei. Although he knows that this position will put him in a dangerous position, compared with his previous situation, an officer like him needs such an opportunity to give it a try.
"Your Excellency, Commander."
Division Commander Shigeto stood in front of General Matsui. The military meeting had already been disbanded by General Matsui. Since so many people are unable to share the worries of the empire, when you go back, pick out the most capable people in your army for me.
"Thank you for your hard work, Shigeto-kun. You have maintained order for the empire on that island and have trained such a brave and skilled army. If I hadn't been so busy with official duties since arriving in Pujiang, I would have invited you over for a chat."
Hearing General Matsui's voice, Captain Shigeto was also frightened. In the past, he could only salute the general from a distance, and the general might not even look at him straight in the eye. But he didn't expect that he would speak to him so kindly now.
"Your Excellency, Commander, you are too kind. Your official duties concern the Empire's expeditionary strategy. Naturally, it is not something a small figure like me can interfere with."
General Matsui was very satisfied with the attitude of Division Commander Shigeteng.
"Your order was personally issued by the Imperial Headquarters. So far, I don't know which general insisted on it. But whatever the reason, you won't have time to think about it after you leave my office. You must organize your offensive forces to break through the Jinshanwei defenses and find a way for the Japanese Pujiang Expeditionary Force to occupy Pujiang."
When General Matsui was speaking, he also wanted to see who was behind this guy. After all, this guy was low-key and had always been a marginal figure. He didn't expect that he would be brought out at such a moment. This is worth reflecting on.
The Pujiang Expeditionary Force is General Matsui's territory. People in the country can interfere in it, but they cannot interfere too much.
"Reporting to His Excellency the Commander, I don't know many of the seniors within the Imperial Headquarters. If I knew them before, I wouldn't..."
When this guy said this, he closed his mouth. If he continued, he would offend people.
Commander Matsui smiled and nodded. The guy in front of him was right. If he already had such connections within the headquarters, he would have escaped from the island long ago. With his qualifications, how could he still be just a detachment commander? Perhaps at worst, he would be the chief of staff of a division.
The two men quickly ended the meeting here, handed him a batch of information about Jinshanwei, and took away more than a dozen staff members. With his original structure, he would definitely not be able to command such a large army, which was 5 divisions and 12 troops.
In response to this change on the Japanese side, the commander of the Pujiang War Zone also made corresponding deployments.
Li Shaoyi will personally serve as the commander-in-chief of the Jinshanwei position.
It has 72nd Army and 4 regiments.
The 3rd, 8th and 9th Divisions of the Central Army.
The 146th and 147th Divisions of the Sichuan Army.
The 108th and 109th Divisions of the Northeast Army.
The 174th and 176th Infantry Divisions of the Guangxi Clique.
The 19th and 23rd Divisions of the Hunan Army.
There are a total of 10 infantry divisions with nearly 10 troops.
According to the regular organization of the National Government, each division should have between 12,000 and 14,000 people. However, due to funding and other reasons, except for a few infantry divisions, the others are not fully staffed. The troops that have been assembled now are the closest to full staffing in the Pujiang War Zone.
Both sides were well aware that they would have at most 2 to 3 days to prepare, and the Battle of Jinshanwei would begin again, and on a much larger scale than before.
"Chief of Staff? I'm Li Shaoyi. No matter what you can do, you must deliver two infantry regiments and one artillery regiment to the Pujiang battlefield within three days."
"Ma Leizi? I order your unit to transport two infantry regiments and one artillery regiment to Pujiang within one day."
"Chairman Chen? The Overseas Chinese Corps has made great contributions, but now the situation on the Pujiang battlefield has changed. We need to mobilize 2-3 regiments of troops and arrive at the Pujiang battlefield within 5 days."
Li Shaoyi knew that funds were scarce everywhere, but he was the one who took the initiative to command the Battle of Jinshanwei, so there must be no signs of retreat. The 10 infantry divisions given by the National Government were also elite troops selected from various units. Li Shaoyi planned to equip each infantry division with an infantry regiment of the 72nd Army to improve their combat effectiveness.
In addition, each unit will receive a large amount of military assistance, which will be distributed on the way to the battlefield.
The 3rd Division of the Central Army was the army closest to the battlefield and had previously participated in the battle to attack the Japanese naval headquarters.
The entire division of 11,000 people suffered 2500 casualties and went to the west of Pujiang for rest and recuperation.
Currently carrying a standard 12,000 men into battle, it is considered the most reliable of all infantry divisions.
"I've only heard that the men of the 36th Division are the benchmark of the National Army, but I never thought that our brothers in the 3rd Division would also have such a majestic military prestige."
At the Pujiang South Parade Ground, Li Shaoyi inspected the Third Division of the National Army at close range.
"Commander Li, thanks to you, we were able to complete the German-equipped division's re-equipment before the war began. In this Jinshanwei Battle, I, Li, am willing to lead all the men of the Third Division to fight the Japanese in a bloody battle at Jinshan. Commander Li, please assign combat missions."
After hearing what Commander Li of the 3rd Division of the National Army said, Li Shaoyi understood that they had completed the conversion to German equipment by subsequently purchasing arms from Li Shaoyi.
Historically, the 3rd Division of the National Army suffered heavy losses in Pujiang, with half of its grassroots officers killed in battle.
"Don't rush the mission. Order all squad leaders and deputy squad leaders to stand in line. Each of them has an MP40."
Li Shaoyi saw that their squad had quite a few machine guns, so if he wanted to strengthen their firepower, he could start with the squad leader and deputy squad leader...