Chapter 166: Republic of China: Starting from the First Class of Whampoa Chapter 166 Du Yuming's Tanks

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Protagonist:

Lv Muzhi

In the conference room of the Mutsu Battleship, the atmosphere was very awkward.

Commander Matsui Ine was still borrowing the Navy battleship's conference room, and this feeling of depending on others was somewhat unpleasant.

Although most division commanders were commanding battles on the shore, as the Army Commander on the Songhu Battlefield, he himself dared not take this risk.

Before everyone lay that Xia Guo newspaper, with a photograph of the Sixth Regiment Flag on the front page.

The Army generals present all had faces as dark as iron, keeping their heads down in silence, especially Division Commander Fujita Susumu of the Third Division, who was utterly mortified.

Navy Commander Tanikawa Kiyoshi picked up the newspaper and pretended to be lighthearted as he shook it: "Oh, Your Excellency Matsui, it's just a flag! Lost is lost, just have the country make a new one. Why make such a fuss?"

After these words were thrown out, several Army division commanders gritted their teeth in hatred, as if Gu Qingchuan and the Xia Guo Army were equally detestable, but constrained by the occasion and the other party's status, they dared not lash out.

Tanikawa Kiyoshi saw everyone's reaction, smiled without smiling, and continued to feign surprise: "What's going on? Is there anything special about this flag? Could it be... the only Infantry Regiment Flag in the world, bestowed by Emperor Tenghuang, whose loss would result in the revocation of the regiment's establishment, an Infantry Regiment Flag never completely captured by the enemy since the founding of the army?"

Army Commander Matsui Ine could not hold back: "Navy Commander Tanikawa! You are from the Navy, so your eyesight should be good. How can you not recognize that photo in the newspaper?"

Gu Qingchuan immediately picked up the newspaper, looked at the photo, and said word by word: "Infantry... Sixth... Regiment..."

"It really is a regiment flag! This is a huge mess! I'm really anxious for you!"

Matsui Ine exhaled through his nose, arms crossed, thinking about how to retaliate against the Xia Guo Army, and of course, it would be great if he could disgust the Navy as well.

Just then, a communications officer delivered an urgent telegram with a panicked expression.

Matsui Ine took it and looked; his face instantly turned deathly pale. It was a direct inquiry from the General Staff, sternly questioning the loss of the Sixth Regiment Flag, and ordering the revocation of the Sixth Regiment's establishment, with its remnants dispersed to supplement other troops.

The telegram also harshly rebuked Matsui Ine: Can you do it or not? If not, get lost!

Matsui Ine took a deep breath, suppressed the anger and humiliation in his heart, turned to Third Division Commander Fujita Susumu, and loudly commanded: "Immediately disperse all still-mobile remnants of the Sixth Regiment to supplement other regiments of your Third Division. The Sixth Regiment should not exist in the Locust Army!"

Third Division Commander Matsui Ine stood up and said with a sorrowful tone: "Your Excellency! In the bloody battle at Yangxing Town, from Colonel Cangyong Chengzhi, the regiment commander, down, all officers and men have died a glorious death... only some logistics units remain... the regiment's establishment no longer exists in fact..."

Gu Qingchuan interjected: "Since the Sixth Regiment has all died a glorious death, that saves Commander Matsui Ine a lot of trouble. Ah, I propose we observe three minutes of silence for the entire Sixth Regiment."

But Matsui Ine stood up directly: "Yangxing is still in a melee. The Hawksen Xia Unit and the Kana Regiment are both stuck in that mud pit unable to extricate themselves. I have already formulated the latest operation plan. It is time to launch full-scale operations in Shanghai!"

Gu Qingchuan: "Going all in again?"

The five Army division commanders below all raised their heads. Xia Guo publicly put eye drops on them in the newspaper. This time, the devils must go all out to wash away the humiliation.

"I order: the Ninth Division and the Thirteenth Division will advance toward Luodian, their main opponents being Chen Cheng's Fifteenth Group Army and Xue Yue's Nineteenth Group Army;

the Eleventh Division and the 101st Division will attack around Jiangwan, their main opponents being Lv Muzhi's Ninth Group Army and Liao Lei's 21st Group Army. The Third Division's losses are somewhat heavy; it will respond flexibly in the rear and be kept as a reserve;

The China Expeditionary Army's directly subordinate Heavy Artillery Force and Tank Battalion will be allocated to each division to support combat after the meeting. All troops must fight with all their strength and strive to open up the situation!"

Navy Commander Gu Qingchuan listened to Matsui Ine's deployment. His own force was only about two thousand Naval Marines, stationed at Qiujiang Wharf in Jiangwan Town, relying on fleet firepower and staying put.

Now the Army decided to launch full-scale combat, attacking Jiangwan with two divisions. It was likely his naval gunfire support would be indispensable again.

Sure enough, the next second, Matsui Ine came begging again: "Navy Commander Gu Qingchuan..."

"Wait." Gu Qingchuan directly interrupted Matsui Ine.

"I must reiterate to the Army: the barrels of the Navy's naval guns do have a lifespan. In the previous Battle of Luodian, my fleet fired a large number of shells, and some barrels have reached their service life;

The 410mm main guns of my Mutsu Battleship have a barrel lifespan of only about 200 rounds. Last time supporting Luodian, firing twelve volleys in salvo was already a big deal;

In this operation, the Mutsu Battleship will not participate. Other destroyers and cannonboats, and individual light cruisers, may participate in naval gunfire ground attacks as appropriate."

Hearing this, Matsui Ine was furious: "What is this? The homeland has already added 2.5 billion yen in war funding. Why are you still so stingy?"

Gu Qingchuan helplessly said: "Then I don't care. I haven't seen a cent of that money. Last time I already gave you very strong naval gunfire support. I gave you an opportunity, but you couldn't seize it..."

"This time is different from last time. Last time I only had two divisions. This time I have five divisions, plus a Heavy Artillery Force. Charging once more might just take it..."

Matsui Ine and Gu Qingchuan bargained on the battleship. On the Xia Guo Army side, they were actively preparing for battle.

The devils landing so many troops this time were not just for show. After the Yangxing offensive was blocked, the devils would surely find a way to open a breakthrough from other aspects.

Regarding this point, the Third War Zone Headquarters had already discussed it: the devils would launch a large-scale offensive in the near future!

The President had already left Shanghai. After indulging himself, he returned to the command post in the great rear and decided to increase troop investment in the Songhu Battlefield.

The President was a man of his word. No sooner had he left than a mechanized force advanced into the Songhu Battlefield.

Du Yuming brought his Armored Corps, full of ambition, into the combat sequence of Chen Cheng's Left Wing Army.

This was also considering Lv Muzhi's Armored Tank Regiment, whose primary purpose was to defend his Central Route Army's jurisdiction. Chen Cheng's Left Wing Army's defense area still lacked a properly organized armored force.

Therefore, the War Zone Headquarters directly transferred Du Yuming's Armored Corps over. This was also the first Armored Corps of Fruit Preserve, used to enrich Chen Cheng's armored combat capability.

However, after Chen Cheng had seen Lv Muzhi's armored troops, and then looked at the tank force Du Yuming brought, he always felt it was somewhat lacking.