Volume II Chapter 52 The Great Fall
"Outside! Outside! Great victory! Outside! Outside! Outside! Outside! Great victory!!" At noon, the entire streets of Tokyo were shouting like this, which made people think of the scene that declared war on China more than half a month ago. ⊙ "Our submarines dared to attack death, completely eliminated the Huludao Chinese Navy, and all the enemy ships were destroyed! This is the complete victory of Yamato Soul! Onboard! Onboard! Onboard! Onboard!!"
As everyone was shouting ecstatically, people were selling their accounts everywhere in the streets. As the number of people heard about this news, the sound of shouting "Onboard" became louder and louder. The streets and alleys that were originally decorated with lights were once again decorated with red and green decorations to celebrate the navy's victory again. The streets of Tokyo were carnival, and in the Chiyoda-ku Naval Province, the navy people, including Navy Minister Saito Mi, did not have much joy.
"When will the Chinese submarine force recover from this blow?" asked Navy Minister Saito Mitsu.
The only six submarines that risked their lives to attack last night were only Bo-6. According to Major General Origuchi's report, he lurked until 8 o'clock in the morning. After floating up and sinking the Chinese gunboat, the oil depot of Huludao Military Port was suddenly ignited by the flames of the gunboat explosion. Then the entire military port exploded violently, and many Chinese submarines were affected. Major General Origuchi, as the only survivor, sent a telegram to the Lushun Command on his way back. Although there were many uncertainties in his words, the base camp still publicized the news of the victory to cover up the army's defeat in Kuandian and the entire northern line in the morning. Saito Mi understood the government's strategy and was full of doubts about Major General Origuchi's report.
"Your Excellency, if the oil depot in the Chinese military port explodes, even if the submarine is not injured, it will take three to six months to rebuild the port. With this time, we can transport enough troops and supplies to the brigade University, and in three months or six months, we should be able to come up with an effective solution to the Chinese submarine." Major General Sato Tetsutaro proposed. The fuse of the Sino-Japanese war here was the storm plan he proposed last year. As a result, the failure to contain China also lost four warships. He has been criticized in the Navy Province.
"The news from Zhoushan is that the Chinese East China Sea Fleet has shown signs of mobilization." Another famous navy adviser, Major General Akiyama, also said. "We should immediately send a destroyer fleet to patrol the coastal areas of China to prevent the submarines of the East China Sea Fleet from entering the Bohai Sea."
"The news came from Zhoushan?" General Ijiyuan Goro, Minister of Military Command, questioned. "The Chinese people have completely blocked the entire country. Can we get news from the China East China Sea Fleet?"
"Your Excellency, yes!" said Masato Akiyama. "The Chinese blockade is only aimed at the Japanese, and it is difficult for the Chinese to blockade. I suggest sending a large number of destroyers and cruiser fleets in the waters north of the Chinese Zhoushan. At the same time, domestic troops and materials are transported to Lushun and Dalian at a faster pace. According to the pre-war situation, the Chinese Navy was too hasty when building the Huludao military port, and the number of shore artillery was very limited. Since the Chinese submarines have lost their combat capabilities, we should immediately send warships to shell the Huludao military port so that the Chinese Navy cannot restore it. This is the best way to truly control the sea power of the Bohai Sea! If possible, the army should also land in Qinhuangdao and Jinzhou areas and completely occupy the western Liaoning area."
"Loading?" Akiyama said that shelling Huludao made everyone nod. But when he heard that he was about to land, Saito Mi smiled, "Akiyama, the current China is not the same as the former China. The combat effectiveness of the Yang family's Fuxing Army is not much worse than that of the army's red deer, otherwise the base camp and the cabinet would not vigorously publicize the victory of our attack. We should immediately suggest that the base camp quickly transport troops and supplies to Lushun. Only when the army wins in Manchuria can we truly carry out the decisive battle in the Zhili Plain. It is not possible to land, but shelling is necessary immediately. Draft the order immediately, and let the fleet stationed in Lushun carry out this task!"
"Hai!" Seeing Saito Mi's plan, Sato Tetrataro and Akiyama Matsuno had to call it.
At the same time, Beijing Yin'an Palace, the cabinet press conference.
Lu Bicheng, dressed in an official robe, walked out of the back door of the press room on time and performed the same opening remarks thousands of times without a smile: "Ladies and gentlemen, good evening! Before answering your questions, I have the following news to post:
At 7:30 on the first lunar month, Beijing time, all the units of our Fuxing Army launched a fierce offensive against the Japanese invading troops that invaded our northeast. Within an hour, our 33rd Division and 28th Division occupied Maodian, Daxing, and Shicheng. The troops pointed directly to the right wing of the Japanese army, and could cut off the Japanese army's retreat at any time. At this time, the battle in Kuandian Phoenix and other places was continuing. I believe that at this time of tomorrow, the Japanese army under the Motianling Mountains will be completely surrounded by our army...
Lu Bicheng said a few news in a vague way, but no one cared about the incident of Huludao military port being attacked by Japanese naval submarines. People who knew the rules of the press conference were waiting patiently, just waiting for her to finish reading all the news and announced that the following was the time for asking questions. Everyone at the scene gave the first opportunity to ask questions to Mr. Morixun, the most popular government-friendly one. "May I ask Lord Lu, I heard that the Japanese submarine successfully attacked the Huludao Naval Base at dawn today. The oil depot in the port exploded and all the submarines were destroyed. Is this true?"
The person in the Prime Minister's Office did not give Lu Bicheng this news at all. Now when Mori Xun asked, Lu Bicheng's face suddenly became stunned, but fortunately, the news officer had trained to respond before, so she coughed and said, "The News Office has not received any news about the attack on the Navy's Huludao Base..."
When Lu Bicheng said this, many reporters at the scene were in an uproar. Although the court had a tendency to make news public, the Qing Dynasty still had a deep impression on everyone. All wars were reported by good news but not bad news. This time, the News Office reported in detail about the war in the Kuandian Phoenix area, but did not say a word about the attack on the Huludao Military Port. It was to cover up the truth. It seemed that Huludao suffered heavy losses.
"Master Lu, can our submarines still go out to sea to blockade the brigade?" Lu Hongkui, the Imperial Daily, stood up and shouted loudly. Because of Yang Du's relationship, he was a hard-core supporter. The Imperial Daily also praised the war here, especially the submarine troops deployed in Huludao. Under the propaganda of the Imperial Daily, it would be more powerful than the Beiyang Fleet. If the Huludao submarines were gone, the previous flattery would be unreal.
"Everyone. Our country is not the only submarine force deployed in Huludao. Even if Huludao is attacked, Zhoushan..." Lu Bicheng was really confused. She said this. The reporters who originally thought Huludao had suffered only a slight loss also felt that something big happened in Huludao, otherwise why would Lu Bicheng say that another submarine force would be?
The press conference ended with the lament of Chinese journalists. Although the reporters were not naval, they had a good understanding of the role of the navy, especially the submarines since the Battle of the East China Sea. According to official data, there are 48 Chinese submarines, but after the war, foreign journalists inferred that the performance of Chinese submarines and the role played by the wartime were about twenty submarines equipped by the Chinese navy. And according to an unknown source, the Chinese government ordered 80 submarines in Germany, and these submarines had paid deposits at the beginning of last year. However, after the Battle of the East China Sea, the submarines were valued by the navies of various countries. Because the German navy also had to equip submarines, these built submarines were resold to the German navy by the shipyard. This news said that it was a nose and eyes, and the sudden replacement of the Chinese ambassador to Germany in the last few days at the end of the year made the news believe by most people.
"It's over, the capital is in danger now!" After leaving the press conference, Lu Hongkui said to Huang Yuansheng, a special correspondent stationed in Beijing in Shanghai. As Huang Yuansheng became famous, he had long wanted to recruit this talent.
"The Gyeonggi is dangerous?" Huang Yuansheng shook his head and said, "I think it is dangerous in the Northeast. Now the Japanese army is stopped by submarines and cannot increase its troops. Now, as long as the submarines go, Japan will inevitably increase its troops in the Northeast. As for Gyeonggi, the Northeast Fuxing Army will have to encircle the Japanese army's retreat, and Japan cannot take care of Gyeonggi for a while."
"Yuanyong. Are you saying that the Japanese army will increase their troops and launch an offensive along the Dongqing Railway?" Lu Hongkui said. He was worried that the Japanese army would land in the capital, after all, the capital was uneasy once the submarines left.
"That's right!" Huang Yuansheng said with concern: "The Northeast Revival Army took advantage of the lack of Japanese troops and made a left hook. This punch really hit the Japanese's waist. The 33rd Division is the 3rd Town of Beiyang, and the soldiers trained by Yuan Gong are not the Green Camp. After an hour of fighting, they took down Maodian and replenished ammunition and then fought again. Then tomorrow might really take down Liujiahe or Tongyuan Fort with the 28th Division. If this is the case, the Japanese under the Motianling will really suffer. What a pity! In this situation, the Japanese will last for a few more days. Once the reinforcements arrive, the siege will be resolved."
They are all for news and report on the war in the Northeast every day. The map of Liaodong is printed in the hearts of reporters. After hearing Huang Yuansheng say this, Lu Hongkui also thought about it. He said for a while: "But the Japanese want to increase their troops, and Andong Harbour has been destroyed. Could it be that they want to increase their troops and the brigade?"
"It's the University of Lu." Huang Yuansheng pinched his beard and had a very military admiral style. "There are many Japanese people and ships. They have long been thinking about how to send people to the University of Lu. I dare to conclude that the war will definitely start in Gaizhou within two days."
Huang Yuansheng said it was decisive. In fact, just when he was speaking, Japanese troops were boarding ships in various ports such as Yasan, Nanpu, Incheon, Nagasaki, Osaka, Yokohama, Kobe, etc. After the news of Huludao's attack came out, one of the decisions of the Navy was to shell Huludao. After the army came up with a plan to stabilize the battle situation on the northern front, it ordered the Korean troops in China to gather urgently and increase troops through sea routes to large areas.
Standing at the command post of Nanpu Port, Ichiho Bingwei, the commander of the 5th Army who was watching the soldiers boarding the ship, sighed and said, "It's really God bless the great Japanese! The Chinese submarines are finally gone."
"Your Excellency, as long as the maritime transportation line can be guaranteed, the Chinese army will definitely fail. Their defense line is too long. From then on, the Chinese army will be exhausted. This reminds people of the situation after the Beiyang Navy was completely wiped out in Weihaiwei after the Battle of the Japanese and Qing Dynasty." Chief of staff Kawakao sighed like the commander. He actually wanted to say why the navy had such good luck in every battle. Could it be that it was really blessed by the great god Amaterasu?
"Can you still support me?" asked Aihu Bingwei. "The first ship arrives in Anton, I'm afraid it's going to be tomorrow morning."
"Hisser Dashan has ordered us to go to Dalian, and the Chinese army's offensive has been blocked by the 3rd Army. Now we have to launch an offensive north from the South Manchuria Railway, so that we can truly put the Chinese army in a passive position." Kawahe Cao said. "The supply cannot be guaranteed by relying on a Jingyi line alone. The decisive battle still needs to be on the line of Haicheng, Yingkou Dashiqiao."
"Has the attack of the Chinese army blocked the Northern Front?" General Yihuwei was a little surprised. In the morning, the General Staff of the Manchu Army strongly urged the 5th Army to quickly reinforce, and now he is not in a hurry.
"The Master of the Temple ordered the use of special bullets. The Chinese army had to stop the attack." Kawaka said. "The Chinese Revival Army had suffered the loss of special bullets before. Now we see our army using such shells. They can only stop the attack."
It was heard that the special bomb was used, and Ikha Bingwei couldn't help but feel relieved about the war on the Andong North Line. The special bomb was a weapon to defeat the Chinese army with absolute confidence this time. According to the base camp's experiment, no one could survive in chlorine.
Ichiho Bingwei thought so easily. In fact, Masato Nakachi and the staff of the Manchu Army in the morning had a big difference between whether to use special bombs. Many staff members believed that using special bombs now would make them lose their suddenness. If special bombs were suddenly used during the decisive battle, it would be very likely that the Chinese army would be wiped out completely. It would be too unworthy to use them now.
Although the staff members had such an idea, the right wing situation was critical, and the Chinese army would be given another one more day. Then Tongyuan Fort would be likely to be occupied by the Chinese army before its reinforcements arrived. Once Tongyuan Fort was occupied, the troops that had advanced to the Lianshan Pass on Motianling would be surrounded by the Chinese army. This loss was unbearable for anyone. Therefore, with the permission of the commander Marshal Dashanyan, the special bomb was approved for use.
After this order, the Japanese artillery began to fire chlorine bombs at 4:00 in the afternoon. As soon as the shell exploded on the front line, the yellow-green smoke scared the soldiers who arrived at the army. The front line commander took the troops back without waiting for a report. As soon as he retreated here, the Japanese army immediately recovered the lost ground, and the results of the morning were in vain.
It may be pity to lose the results, but if the Japanese army uses chlorine shells as a weapon to directly attack their own positions, the General Staff would have to make a decision: Should we use gas masks? At this time, the Fuxing Army was no longer in Yanzhou. The entire front line is now hundreds of kilometers. The combat troops are more than 200,000, plus the people in the war zone. Specially approved journalists entering the war zone and military observers of "friendly" countries. As long as the troops use gas masks, the leak is certain. And among the Fuxing Army on the front line, the 11th Army was not equipped with gas masks because of its low confidentiality level. Once the Japanese attacked in the direction of Kuandian, even if the use of gas masks is approved, the left wing defended by the 11th Army may collapse overnight.
With various questions, on the night of the first day of the Chinese New Year, several big figures in the war room with closed doors and windows in the Chenyang Command were discussing military information.
"The Japanese offensive has temporarily stopped, but it cannot be concluded that it will not attack tomorrow. What restricts the Japanese army is still logistics supply. After Huludao was attacked, this restriction was removed. According to the intelligence agency, the Japanese army is transporting troops on a large scale to the brigade. Once the Japanese army's troops are over, combat materials will be replenished, then it is time for it to launch a general attack." Huang Fujin said that the whip was on the front line of Haicheng. "At present, Yingkou, Dashiqiao, and Haicheng will be the focus of competition. Taking Haicheng, you can threaten Chenyang in the north and Jinzhou in the west. If the floes in the Bohai Sea end, then the Japanese army can directly land from Qinhuangdao and threaten the capital of the capital. Nearly 400 kilometers of coast from Jinzhou to Tianjin will be difficult to defend!"
The more Huang Fujin said, the more gloomy the face was. If Yang Rui and Leo were not present, he would have cursed. What was the navy? The Japanese submarine came to the oil depot and the military port was blown up by someone. This was even more Beiyang than Beiyang. No, these people were passed down from Beiyang, and they really did not have enough to make a mistake!
Taking a deep breath, Huang Fujin said again: "Now the news from Huludao is that many Japanese warships have shelled the military ports in the offshore seas. The Japanese army's plan is probably to prevent our army from restoring the military port. If the military port cannot be restored, even if the submarines of the East China Sea Fleet come, there will be no place to settle down."
"Okay, the General Staff will deal with the Navy matters!" Seeing that Huang Fujin's introduction has been targeting the navy and Yang Rui, who understood the whole story, interrupted. The Huludao Navy is immortal, and the Japanese army cannot get ashore at all. If the Japanese army does not get ashore, how can we encircle and annihilate it? Therefore, the destruction of Huludao is necessary. It is worth it to exchange a military port for the entire Japanese army.
After saying this, he said, "Let's judge how the Japanese army will fight? It is inevitable to occupy the Haicheng. If they do not occupy the Haicheng, their 1st and 3rd Army will not be able to join the Japanese army in the general direction. But what after taking the Haicheng? How will they fight? Go north or go west?"
Hearing Yang Rui's question, Bei Shou said: "It should be advancing westward. At that time, some Japanese and our army can hold on the line of Panjin in Liaoyang, so that the Northeast army will be blocked outside the pass. The Japanese army will advance westward to occupy Jinzhou. If the defenders in our pass leave the pass to meet the Japanese army in Jinzhou in western Liaoning. Once the Japanese landed from Qinhuangdao, the troops in western Liaoning can only retreat to the western mountainous areas to protect themselves. The entire Liaoxi Corridor will be occupied by the Japanese army. The navy will make a big splash this time!"
Bei Shou was one of the people who knew the truth about Huludao. Even so, he couldn't help but sigh. As soon as the submarine went, the entire Bohai cave was opened, and the capital was in danger of being surrounded by accident, but it was too dangerous!
After sighing at the navy, he continued: "The current plan is to increase troops throughout western Liaoning. The two armies arranged before are not enough. I have a premonition that Japan will soon take the idea of western Liaoning. As long as the Japanese navy that shelled Huludao was not attacked by submarines, they can be sure that our Huludao submarine force has lost its combat effectiveness. In this way, even if there is thin ice along the Bohai Sea coast, the Japanese army will take the opportunity to break the ice and land, especially Huludao.
Once western Liaoning is controlled by the Japanese army, our army will be divided into two parts, one outside the pass and one inside the pass. This brings a problem. With Tonghua's military-industrial capabilities, it is difficult to maintain the combat of 600,000 troops outside the pass. At this time, there will be a situation where there are troops but no ammunition outside the pass, and there are ammunition inside the pass. Therefore, the entire Liaoxi Corridor must be defended to the death. The ammunition inside the pass must be accelerated from tonight. How much can be transported out? Otherwise, when the Liaoxi Corridor is cut off by the Japanese army, our airship will not be able to undertake the task of replenishing ammunition."
"That plan is done!" Leo said. He felt that everyone was a little panicked at today's meeting. There was no logistics support and lack of guns and bullets was terrible. However, as a soldier, panicking because of the unfavorable situation is a shame. After he instructed Bei Shoutong, he said: "Many things will have accidents in the war. Even the simplest things will be extremely difficult to do during the war. If the Japanese army occupy Huludao, or the entire Liaoxi Corridor, we don't need to panic. Because in this case, the battle in the northeast region can only be defense, and the main attack direction of the Japanese army will be the Zhili Plain. Only by occupying Beijing and capturing the emperor will they be the real winners.
Is this possible? No! This is impossible! This is a shame for soldiers. No one of our officers or soldiers will let the Japanese do this. Generals, the Japanese now have the opportunity to land at will. Even so, the places they can choose are limited. One is the Liaoxi Corridor, especially Qinhuangdao, and the other is Tianjin. Where is the Shang Port, and the throughput of the dock is the largest among the northern ports. Our army can only defend these two locations in a targeted manner. Although Tianjin cannot directly send troops according to the treaty, as long as the Japanese army shows signs of landing, the army must enter the Tianjin area to deploy defense.
China is a country with a large population. Although our reserve construction has just begun, there are already two million reserve troops. Even if these troops cannot be used for various reasons, 300,000 troops can still be easily accomplished by assembling 25 divisions in the direction of Jingji. With these 300,000 troops, it is enough to win the Battle of the Zhili Plain. Generals, we must firmly believe that victory will always belong to the Revival Army!"
Leo, who rarely talked about it, suddenly said a lot of words, which made Yang Rui feel that the matter in Huludao was indeed a bit big, but when he thought that he couldn't bear to leave his children and could not trap the wolf, he endured it. The military conference was held until twelve o'clock in the night. As soon as the closed room opened, Li Zilong came over with a stack of telegrams and said: "Sir, these telegrams are all about the situation in Huludao. There are parliamentary, government ministries, and German and American ministers. Oh, Mr. Xiao Xu and Mr. Xianhua also called from abroad..."
"Everyone told them that the Fuxing Army has 500,000 troops in the pass, and the safety of the Jingji area can be guaranteed." Yang Rui replied with a calm face.
"Sir, saying this is equivalent to admitting Huludao..." Li Zilong reminded.
Chapter completed!