Chapter 1475 Debate (Part 1)

The two who had basically reached an agreement saluted again in front of Sun Mingjin's tomb. Fang Xianjue, in a good mood, decided to go to the attack and defense exercise base that Tang Dao had been running for half a year.

Many people knew about that base, but all the generals in the war zone knew that Tang Dao had offended that person. Unless it was absolutely necessary, the Four-Line Regiment was destined to carry the ash bucket until the end of the war. Although they were all very sad, in order to avoid suspicion, except for a few generals such as General Guo, the deputy commander of the 27th Army Group, and Major General Xie Jinyuan, who were very close to Tang Dao, Fang Xianjue, whose military headquarters was in Hengyang, had never come to see it once.

Thinking of the future cooperation with the Four-Line Regiment, a strong army, and his current status as an idle counselor of the Military and Political Department, Fang Xianjue naturally had no previous scruples.

However, before leaving, he sent guards to inform Zhao and Sun, who were waiting for him at the foot of the mountain, that he would accompany his close friends in the tomb for two days, so they didn't have to wait any longer and could return to Hengyang City on their own.

After arranging everything, Fang Xianjue, in a good mood, let Tang Shanhe sit on his shoulders and walked down the mountain with Tang Dao and his wife. He listened to Tang Shanhe telling him stories in a baby voice and burst into laughter from time to time.

Although young life is delicate, watching it grow strong and mature will always involuntarily generate expectations for the future.

Especially in these years of war, this thing called hope is even more precious.

This may be the happiest day for this famous general in the 9th War Zone since his best friend died in December last year.

But this general in the army may not have expected that the surprise given to him by the colonel of the engineering corps is far from over.

Sitting in Tang Dao's assault jeep, which many division commanders do not have, Fang Xianjue arrived at the legendary attack and defense exercise base.

When the jeep was 1,000 meters away from the base, Fang Xianjue couldn't help but take a breath when he looked at it with his naked eyes.

What kind of training ground is this? It is clearly a carefully constructed military fortress!

The fortress has no walls to block it, and countless houses built of loess are clearly visible inside. It is precisely because of these houses that people cannot see how many fortresses and fortifications are deployed inside. The outside of the fortress is full of deep trenches and dense barbed wire, especially several artificially piled hills of 20 to 30 meters high. Facing the attacking party, they are all cut into cliffs of nearly 90 degrees, which looks terrifying.

"This is." Fang Xianjue looked at the military fortress that was obviously different from his imagination and asked subconsciously.

"Hehe, this is the terrain reproduced in the same way as a corner of HY City. It is the defensive fortification design made by Ye Chenghuan, the director of the Political Department of our regiment, and Leng Feng, the chief of staff, after nearly ten field attack and defense exercises!" Tang Dao chuckled.

"It seems that you, the great commander Tang, started to prepare for a rainy day last year! Your sense of smell for the battlefield is really the second best I have ever seen in my life. Only Mr. Baili is better than you." Fang Xianjue's eyes flashed with amazement.

What he was amazed at was obviously not how tight the fortifications were, but that Tang Dao had actually started preparing for the Battle of Hengyang a year in advance. This kind of foresight of the battlefield was really too strong. Even he was not fully alert until the Japanese North China Front suddenly launched a surprise attack on the First War Zone in February.

"Commander Fang, you are too kind. It's not that I have a sense of battlefield. It is the characteristic of our Chinese nation to be prepared for danger in times of peace. Our regiment is stationed in the Hengyang area. If there is a war, the Hengyang city area will be the central battlefield. Naturally, I can only order my regiment to replicate the terrain in the Hengyang area, make corresponding defensive fortifications and defense drills, and sweat more in training, so that less blood can be shed in war." Tang Dao said modestly.

"What a good idea of ​​sweating more in training and less blood in war. If I can really return to the 10th Army, I must convey your concept to the whole army." Fang Xianjue strode towards the civil fortifications.

He wanted to see how Tang Dao's Four-line Regiment could deploy fortifications for urban defense. Although he had only been a student of Mr. Baili for a few months, he was well versed in the key to positional defense, "three parts guns and seven parts fortifications". The 10th Army also attached great importance to the construction of various fortifications in daily training.

For example, his young chief of staff Sun Minyu, who was originally an architect, had considerable insights into the construction of field fortifications. Although he was a little arrogant, Fang Xianjue still admired and valued him.

"Come, tell me your opinion on the defense of Hengyang City first, such as where the main attack direction of the Japanese army will be." Fang Xianjue did not ask the low-level question that the defense focus of this military fortress simulating part of the terrain of Hengyang City was not inside but outside, but asked Tang Dao's judgment on the main attack direction of the Japanese army.

Although this simulated military fortress had actually exposed Tang Dao's intentions, he still wanted to hear Tang Dao's analysis.

"HY is a tiny city, but despite its small size, its strategic location is extremely important. The Xiangjiang River, Zhengshui River, and Leishui River pass around the city. In modern times, Wu Sangui proclaimed himself emperor in Hengyang, and Zeng Guofan trained troops in Hengyang. They all saw the strategic value of Hengyang as the center of Hunan Province and the key point of the Xiangjiang River waterway.

This geographical environment is quite similar to Xuzhou. Both are small in scale but very important in location. Xuzhou is the intersection of the Jinpu and Longhai railways, while Hengyang is the intersection of the Yuehan and Xianggui railways.

Moreover, the most similar point between the two cities is that there are no high mountains around them. They belong to the "four-war zone" often mentioned in military books. The so-called four-war zone means being attacked from all sides." It is obvious that Tang Dao has not been playing around Hengyang for nothing in the past six months. He has already understood the strategic position of Hengyang and the surrounding terrain.

After talking about it in one breath, Fang Xianjue nodded frequently, and he admired the young army colonel in front of him who was less than 30 years old.

As the saying goes, you don't fight a battle without preparation. Tang Dao has done all the preparations in advance. No wonder he has led the Four Lines Regiment to fight on the battlefield for so many years without a single defeat.

This has something to do with the military quality and equipment of the officers and soldiers of the Four Lines Regiment. More importantly, it must be that Tang Dao, the commander, has enough foresight and meticulous preparations.

Tang Dao waved his hand, and Shi Dakuan, who was the driver of the two, took out the Hengyang map from his shoulder bag and spread it in front of the two.

This map is really not small. Not only does it have detailed place names and street names, but it also shows how high and long the mountains around Hengyang are, how wide the rivers are, and even a stream is not spared. It is simply a miniature sand table.

"This is what Jiayue spent five months drawing with the surveying team. There is only this one in the whole of China." Tang Dao said to Councillor Fang, whose eyes were shining with warm light.

Fang Xianjue felt a little depressed. This feeling of being able to see the whole situation almost sitting in the command post is the dream of all commanders. You are just jealous of me, aren't you?

"However, if Commander Fang can be reinstated and can apply for my Four-Line Regiment to participate in the battle in Hengyang, then this map will be hung in your operations room." Tang Dao pursed his lips and continued.

"Remember in the future, you can't breathe heavily when giving gifts. No wonder you are still a small regiment commander." After being treated like this by Tang Dao, the usually serious General Fang couldn't help but roll his eyes.

"Haha! Commander Fang's teachings, Tang Dao will definitely remember them in his heart." Tang Dao laughed and pointed at the map. "Since we can attack from all sides, which side will the Japanese choose as the main attack direction?

The undisputed one is the east of the city! Hengyang is adjacent to the Xiangjiang River in the east. This section of the river is wide, deep and turbulent. Moreover, we have several airports in Liuzhou and other places at this time. We have air supremacy. It is unlikely that the Japanese army will force a crossing of the Xiangjiang River with bombs dropped on their heads.

In the east of the city, our defenders only need to guard along the river bank with one or two battalions of troops, and deploy mines in the middle of the river, and set up about 8 37mm anti-tank guns on the shore. Once the Japanese army really makes a fool of themselves, If they come to attack, the 37mm anti-tank guns or Japanese 70mm infantry guns with permanent fortifications can teach them a lesson!

Even if they really succeed in forcing the crossing, the river bank is flat and there is no shelter. We will set up heavy artillery positions in the city and use pre-set artillery units to cover the Japanese troops landing on the river bank. No matter how many come, we can let them stand up and lie down.

This place can be used as a place to lure the enemy! "

"I have an idea, not bad!" Fang Xianjue looked at the map of Hengyang City and nodded without comment.

The terrain in the east of the city, he rode a horse to observe it at the beginning of his garrison in Hengyang, and the conclusion he came to was roughly the same. Unless the Japanese are crazy, they will choose this place as the main attack place.

"The north of the city is possible. If the Japanese attack Hengyang, it must be that Tanzhou has been lost. The Japanese come from that direction, and the front will naturally go to the north city. "Tang Dao pointed his hand to the north of Hengyang City.

"Oh?" Fang Xianjue didn't even nod this time, but just raised his eyebrows slightly.

Fang Xianjue had fought with the Japanese army for many years, and he was familiar with the Japanese army's tactics. Although the Japanese army always liked to brag that they were very tough, in fact, they rarely adopted the central breakthrough tactics in actual combat. When they fought a siege, they often invested a large number of troops and heavy firepower in the front battlefield to attract the attention of the opponent, and the real decisive attack was mostly launched from the two wings.

In addition, since the first two Tanzhou battles, in order to prevent the Japanese army from coming from Tanzhou, the Changheng Highway had been destroyed long ago. It was difficult for the Japanese army's heavy artillery and tanks to be transported from this road. There was also Zhengshui in the north of the city. Although Zhengshui was not as wide as the Xiangjiang River, it was also one of the three Xiangs and was not easy to swim across.

From the perspective of terrain and tactics, the north of the city was not a good place for the Japanese army to use troops. Fang Xianjue personally did not agree that the Japanese army would launch the main attack from the north of the city.

"There is a steaming water in the north of the city. The Japanese with short legs will drown if they fall into it. I don't think Yokoyama Isamu will be so stupid. The main attack sites can only be in the west and south of the city." Tang Dao saw Fang Xianjue's expression, but he didn't know what he was thinking, but he changed the subject and pointed his hand at the west and south cities.

Fang Xianjue looked calm, but he hoped that Tang Dao would say something different.

There were several debates about the city defense at the 10th Army's internal senior military meeting. The generals of the divisions and brigades had different opinions on whether the Japanese army should attack from the west or the south, and the debate was quite intense.

To the west of Hengyang City, with the Great West Gate as the boundary, the terrain on the north and south sides is completely different. From the Great West Gate to the north to the Zhengshui River in the north of the city, the terrain is open and flat, with fish ponds everywhere, while from the Great West Gate to the south to the Xiangjiang River, it is a rolling, endless hilly terrain, and the direction of the mountains is parallel to the east-west Xianggui Railway.

Zhou Qingxiang, commander of the 3rd Division of the 10th Army, believed that the terrain in the northwest of the city was open and flat, which was conducive to the movement of the Japanese mechanized troops and could give full play to the firepower advantage. The Japanese army was very likely to choose the northwest to attack. His reason for opposing the south of the city as the main attack direction of the Japanese army was also very simple. It was a feint attack at the beginning and would cause heavy casualties to the infantry.

This view once dominated the generals in the 10th Army, and even the chief of staff Sun Minyu was persuaded by this view.

Fang Xianjue disagreed with this view. He believed that the mountains in the south of the city were indeed not easy to attack, but they were also not conducive to the defense of the city.

Since ancient times, the biggest taboo in defending a city is dodging. For the attacking party, once they seize the commanding heights outside the city, it is equivalent to seizing the initiative to attack the city. Therefore, from ancient times to the present, the emphasis of attacking cities is "defending dangerous places instead of defending the city walls, and occupying the mountains first when attacking the city". The Taiping Army was well aware of this. When they defended the city, they usually defended the high ground outside the city instead of defending the city. When attacking the city, they first seized the high ground outside the city and launched an attack on the city from a high position.

The Japanese army was quite conceited about its artillery strike capability and mountain combat capability, so when they attacked the city, most of them first seized the commanding heights, and then used cannons to bombard the city from a high position. This is why the Japanese army attacked Yuelu Mountain with heavy troops in the three battles in Tanzhou, and General Xue simply set up his war zone headquarters in Yuelu Mountain.

That mountain range is actually the lifeline of Tanzhou. Once Yuelu Mountain is lost, Tanzhou City cannot be defended.

"Commander Fang, let's not talk about how great the threat of the commanding heights is to the city, nor the mountains in the south of the city are not conducive to attacking one side, but once the attack is successful, the entire Hengyang can be quickly controlled and the battle can be quickly ended.

Just talking about the principle of quick battle and quick decision that the Japanese army has always advocated, if they mainly attack the west of the city, even if they succeed, do they still have to attack the south of the city? Why, when attacking from the outside, it is an upward attack, and attacking from the inside can make the mountain shorter? Instead of struggling to finish the west of the city and then attack the south of the city, it is better to bite the bullet and capture the most difficult south of the city first.

In addition, Hengyang Airport, Yuehan Railway, and Hunan-Guangxi Railway are the three most strategically valuable military bases in Hengyang. Facilities, among which, Hengyang Airport and Yuehan Railway are located outside Hengyang City, basically without defense, and will be lost once the war starts. The Hunan-Guangxi Railway is different. This railway is close to the south of the city, connecting HY city on one end and the southwest rear on the other. Reinforcements and supplies must come from this line. It can even be said that this is the lifeline of Hengyang. If the Japanese army takes the south of the city as the main attack direction, it can cut off the Hunan-Guangxi Railway and cut off all connections between Hengyang and the southwest rear, becoming an isolated army.

Therefore, I can be sure that the south of the city will become the most fiercely contested battlefield between the two sides after the war. "Tang Dao pointed his finger at the mountains in the south of Hengyang City and said with great confidence.

The reason why Tang Dao dared to build a simulated training ground with the terrain around the south of Hengyang City six months in advance was because this judgment was personally proposed by the tiger general in time and space at the military meeting at the end of May, and the Japanese army did just that.

This time, he just said this time point one month earlier.

If Hengyang had an extra month, it would have been enough to make a lot of preparations in advance, as long as Fang Xianjue could be completely convinced by him.

Although the transfer order from the Military and Political Department has been issued, Fang Xianjue will take a plane to report to the Military and Political Department in Shancheng in two days, but Tang Dao knows that except for the commander of the 190th Division who was transferred away and was not under his control, the commander of the 10th Division, Ge Youcai, and the commander of the 3rd Division, Zhou Qingxiang, were both his trusted generals, and the 10th Army was still firmly under his control.

This is like Tang Dao has no worries even if he leaves the Four Lines Regiment for more than half a year. The Four Lines Regiment, from the chief of staff to the commanders of several main battalions, are all comrades who have fought with him on the battlefield for several years. Even if the Military and Political Department sends a regiment commander, let alone the military order cannot be issued from the regiment, it is very likely that the person will not live too long and will die due to an accident.

In this chaotic world, if you want to live, you have to stick together. Without brothers who have risked their lives to help each other, who can guarantee that they can live to see tomorrow's sun? From that person to an ordinary soldier, it is the same.

"If that day really comes, the south of the city will belong to your Four-Line Regiment and the 10th Reserve Division." Fang Xianjue looked at Tang Dao deeply and made a promise to him. "Come on, take me to see the fortifications designed by your regiment."

PS: I updated a little late today, mainly because I had to check the terrain and various materials around Hengyang, which was very troublesome.