Chiang Kai-shek: The 106th Division must be completely annihilated
On October 1, 1938, the heroic 74th Army stood on Zhanggu Mountain, and Matsuura was daunted. Even if you occupy Zhang Gushan, you don't have the strength to attack again. With a very heavy heart, he telegraphed Okamura Ninji: Please send troops to support and drop food and ammunition as soon as possible, because the headquarters only brought five days' supplies and 180 rounds of ammunition per person when they set out. The troops haven't let go of their stomachs for three days, and they have a full meal!
The Chinese army often painted large sun flags on white cloth and spread them on the ground. Of course, the Japanese pilots were stupid enough to drop their parachutes when they saw the sun flag. Watching the plane spit out parachutes one after another at the Chinese army position, Matsuura was so angry that he stomped his feet.
There is certainly no hope for going on like this! Matsuura decided to break through.
Where to break through? After the attack in the direction of Zhanggushan was frustrated, Matsuura heard that more than 2,700 recruits led by Chief of Staff Cheng Fu Chengyi were fighting the northeast front, and the 27th Division was advancing to the southwest of Baishui Bridge, and the Chinese army would be attracted to it in large numbers, thinking that it was a good time for him to break through. When choosing the direction of attack, Matsuura thought about it and made a route to the southwest. In his opinion, it is of course a very good choice to go to the northeast and flank the enemy with the Chengfu Division of his division, but how can the dignified "Imperial Army" go back? He made arrangements overnight and ordered the 1st Brigade of the Mudao Wing, which had the strongest attacking force, to break through the enemy's position on Shibao Mountain. After passing Shibao Mountain, you can echo with the 27th Division, and then go straight down to Baicha and Qiujin to continue to implement the battle plan at the time of departure. He himself followed the brigade closely, and even if the whole division could not break through, he also tried to escape from danger and retreat.
However, in just one night, the battlefield was unrecognizable, and the originally fierce fighting in the northeast was now inexplicably silent. Matsuura had just given the order to break through to Shibao Mountain, and the intelligence officer reported to him: Chief of Staff Cheng Fu Dazuo had been killed in battle, and all the troops had been annihilated.
It seems that Chengfu's department failed too quickly. However, neither Matsuura nor Okamura knew in advance that this recruit corps, although it was all reserve veterans, went directly to the war after enlisting and did not undergo proper refresher training. Afterwards, Okamura believed that it was extremely irresponsible for the Japanese base camp to send such fighters to the front. that
Actually, Okamura doesn't know that Chengfu deserves to be unlucky. It's not that his soldiers are too bad, it's that the enemy is too powerful. His opponent was Ye Zhao's 66th Army who came down from Lushan, a group of Guangdong soldiers who did not want to die!
The situation is deteriorating, and time is running out. Matsuura steadied himself and said firmly: "Implement the breakthrough according to the established plan." ”
Guarding Shibao Mountain was a battalion of more than 500 people from the 159th Division of the 66th Army. From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., the 123rd Wing launched four massive assaults, all of which were repulsed by the defenders. At the end of the battle, there were only about 20 people left in the whole battalion.
As the saying goes, "persistence is victory", at the most critical juncture, on October 7, reinforcements from the 159th Division arrived.
Okamura was still confident in the Wanjialing battlefield, and he continued to coordinate the rescue of the Matsuura Division by the Navy and Air Force.
But the commander of the Central China Dispatch Army in Nanjing, General Toshiroku Hata, could not sit still. As a veteran of the Japanese army, Shunroku Hata benefited from the fall of Matsui Ishine. The Nanjing Massacre, Matsui Ishine became internationally notorious. After Matsui stepped down, Shunroku Hata took office. The Battle of Wuhan was the first major battle in which he independently commanded a front army. His specific requirements for the two army commanders, Okamura and Higashikure, were very concise: the offensive should advance steadily, and there should be no more mistakes like Taierzhuang.
Okamura's initial attack did not go well, and Shunroku Hahata did not blame him too much. From the bottom of his heart, he believes in Okamura's strength, as long as he is steady, he will definitely be able to set foot on the ground in Wuhan before winter comes.
Okamura, on the other hand, is adventurous. On the Chinese battlefield, he has actually taken risks more than once, but his past opponents are too weak, giving him repeated opportunities. But today, Xue Yue resolutely mobilized troops and grabbed Okamura's overstretched hand. This not only made Okamura feel embarrassed, but also forced Shunroku Hatata, who had always sought stability, to a dead end.
Although the instructions from the Tokyo base camp were only a few words, Shunroku Hata was able to taste the weight. Tokyo seems unwilling to let the Imperial Modernized Imperial Army embarrass itself in front of China and the world, and the 106th Division cannot just disappear from the Chinese battlefield in any case.
Although the Japanese Empire was not afraid of losing a 106th Division, it was deeply afraid of losing the military might of the Imperial Army and the invincible and unstoppable momentum of the sun.
At this time, Tokyo revealed the news that the emperor had personally intervened in the battle of Wanjialing and was extremely concerned about whether the Matsuura Division could break through.
The always cautious Toshitoshi Hata was a little flustered. On the one hand, he complained about Okamura's recklessness and underestimation of the enemy, and on the other hand, he made up his mind: he would personally command the Wanjialing siege relief operation.
In order to relieve the siege of Matsuura, Shunroku Hata spared no expense and mobilized almost all the troops that could be called upon, forming a powerful task force.
Japan-China sent the commander of the army, Shunroku Hatata, to the front line to supervise the battle.
The Nyinga Detachment is a new cadre composed of nearly 3,000 supplementary soldiers who have just been trained in Japan and transferred to the Central China Battlefield for on-the-spot training. Shunroku Hahata planned to replenish the division to the Matsuura division after rescuing it.
The Saeda detachment, which originally belonged to the 106th Division, had a lot of troops. Shunroku Hata also drew three infantry battalions from the 27th Division to reinforce Saeda, bringing the strength of the unit to almost the size of one brigade.
The Suzuki detachment almost moved the Suzuki Brigade of the 17th Division of the Central China Front Army intact. The detachment is under the jurisdiction of the 53rd and 54th Infantry Wings, and is undoubtedly the most combat-effective of the three reinforcements. The brigade commander, Major General Haramatsu Suzuki, was also temporarily assigned to the command of the three rescue detachments.
The three reinforcement detachments are like three tigers, and in terms of strength, they have surpassed the besieged Matsuura Division.
Suzuki Harumatsu ignored Matsuura, who frequently called for help, and did not lead his three detachments to relieve the siege of Wanjialing, but attacked eastward along Yongwu Road and its north side. In his opinion, this is in line with the spirit of the Chinese soldiers to "encircle Wei and save Zhao".
The Chinese army's blocking troops are not only in danger of being attacked on both sides and being broken through by the enemy, but also have the possibility of two or three armies being eaten by the enemy. The chaotic scene on the battlefield of Wanjialing became even more chaotic for a while.
In the area north of Zhelin, the figure of the Suzuki rescue force has been blurred, and Chiang Kai-shek in Wuhan was so anxious that he stomped his feet, hoping to turn into a giant dragon and fly to Wanjialing to eat the remnants of Songpu. He felt that Wanjialing's good dreams were turning into more and more soap foam, and then they were bursting away one by one.
On October 5, Xue Yue noticed that the encirclement of the 106th Division had finally formed, and with the gradual weakening of the enemy's strength, the time was gradually ripe for encircling and annihilating the division, so he decisively issued a combat order: Li Hanqun, commander of the 29th Army Corps, commanded the 60th, 91st, and 142nd Divisions, the new 13th, new 15th Division, and the 6th Division, a total of 6 divisions, to move south to deploy formations, block the 27th Division in the direction of Qixi and contain the right back of the 106th Division; Wu Qiwei, commander-in-chief of the 9th Army, commanded the 4th, 66th, and 74th armies and the 187th Division to attack the 106th Division in Wanjialing from east to west.
On the 6th, Matsuura, who had fought hard all night, got up early and stood in front of the battle sign on the map, pursed his lips and smiled: the Chinese army's attacks all night were repulsed, and the Japanese positions were basically not lost. He understood that the giant palm stretched out from Nanjing by General Shunliu Hata relieved his immediate urgency.
Matsuura was happy too soon! At 15 o'clock on the same day, Wu Qiwei, who was actually in charge of the front-line command, issued an order for a general attack, requiring all units to prepare for an attack by 12 o'clock the next day and start a general offensive at 16 o'clock.
The 66th Army focused on attacking Shibao Mountain, and after succeeding, it worked with the 4th and 74th armies to annihilate the enemies of Wanjialing and Tianbusu; The 4th Army covered the right flank of the 66th Army, and the main force of the army secured the existing positions; The 74th Army attacked to the northwest to prevent the enemy from breaking through to the south.
The officers and men of the 66th Army were full of vigor to participate in the battle of Wanjialing, and although they had suffered losses in the previous battles on the front line of the pass, as soon as the attack began, they were fighting hard.
The 4th Army, after blocking the Japanese during the day, launched a counteroffensive at 23 o'clock at night, and because the Japanese also launched an attack on the Lion Cliff position held by the Chinese army at the same time, neither side achieved decisive results.
The direction of the 74th Army's attack was the line of Changling and Zhanggushan, because the 58th Division had suffered heavy losses in the previous defensive battles, and the heavy responsibility of this attack fell to the 51st Division. The troops of the 51st Division were divided into two routes, one directly attacking the positions of Changling and Zhanggushan, and the other way bypassing the enemy's flank and advancing in the direction of Beixi Street.
Although Zhanggu Mountain is only more than 300 meters high, the terrain is steep, shrubs, easy to defend and difficult to attack, and it is an important commanding height in the Wanjialing area. If Zhanggushan is taken, it can not only completely block the survival of the 106th Division, but also condescendingly approach the core position of the Japanese army - the headquarters of the 106th Division is located in Liu Qigu Liu Village at the foot of Wanjialing Mountain. Therefore, Zhang Gushan's gains and losses are directly related to the success or failure of the 106th Division.
The 51st Division has just been punished with a major demerit because of the ineffective counterattack at Ruichang and Minshan, so for the 51st Division, this battle can only be won and not defeated, but the battle in front of it is a little tricky. In order to prevent luck, Yu Jishi almost viciously handed over this task to Wang Yaowu: "In two days, you have to guarantee that I can report the victory to Chief Xue on the mountain!" ”
Seeing the troops who lost their armor and were beaten down, Wang Yaowu also realized that it was not easy to fight over, so he also scolded fiercely: "Fuck, give Lao Tzu these terrible errands!" However, the military order was like a mountain, and he had to gather his brigade commanders and regiment commanders to discuss countermeasures.
Wang Yaowu conveyed the order of the upper peak, asking which regiment had the courage to carry out this task, and if it succeeded, it would be the first major credit in this battle. No one is sure, and no one wants to carry this burden. Just when Wang Yaowu was in trouble, Zhang Lingfu, the commander of the 305th Regiment, stood up: "Our regiment is willing to carry out this task!" ”
Old photo of Zhang Lingfu. Zhang Gushan's first battle made him famous.
More than a year ago, Zhang Lingfu was a prisoner in Nanjing's "Model Prison" who "served as a prisoner for the wife-killing room." After the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, it was Wang Yaowu who bailed him out in front of Chiang Kai-shek and handed over his regiment to him. Whether it is loyalty to the country or gratitude, on this occasion, Zhang Lingfu must and will definitely be able to stand up.
Zhang Gushan is high and dangerous, easy to defend and difficult to attack. The southern slope is relatively gentle, and although it can be attacked from the back, the enemy's fire is bound to be fierce; The northern slope is steep and thorny.
Wang Yaowu handed over the main attack task to Zhang Lingfu, and then asked everyone to give advice.
"Master," Zhang Lingfu said expressionlessly, "Don't waste time, our regiment is responsible for taking down Zhang 마트 tonight!"
Zhang Lingfu has already made up his mind to follow Deng Ai of the Three Kingdoms to smuggle through Yinping and take the northern slope to attack Zhang Gushan.
Back to the regiment, Zhang Lingfu selected 500 strong men, in the tense atmosphere of the frontal feint, personally led the team, through the bush in the dark night, around the north slope, climbing the vines, the gods descended from the sky, and suddenly appeared on the top of Zhanggu Mountain. The Japanese army suffered from the enemy on the belly and back, could not parry, and was defeated and fell down the mountain.
After dawn, the Japanese army began to counterattack with the cooperation of aircraft and heavy artillery, and Zhang Gushan baptized the artillery fire again. Sticking to the top of the hill can only be a live target for the enemy. Zhang Lingfu ordered to withdraw from the mountain. After dark, a counteroffensive was launched and recaptured. For five days and six nights in a row, on Zhanggu Mountain, the red sun flag was displayed in the wind during the day, and the blue sky and white sun flag fluttered in the wind at night······
The 74th Army and Zhang Lingfu became famous in the first battle, and Zhang Lingfu was awarded the Order of Yunlu. Tian Han, director of the Sixth Division of the Third Department of the Military Commission in Changsha and a famous writer, wrote the drama "The Great Victory of De'an" based on this battle and Zhang Lingfu, and Tian Han and Fan Changjiang also personally performed in the army, expressed condolences to the wounded officers and soldiers, and gave speeches to officers at and above the rank of captain of the 74th Army. Because the 74th Army played the military prestige of the Chinese army in this battle, Tian Han wrote the lyrics and Ren Guang, the author of "Yuguang Song", and composed the "Military Song of the 74th Army of the National Revolutionary Army". This military song has become a spiritual force to encourage the officers and soldiers of the 74th to resist the war bravely, and the 74th Army has been famous since then!
By October 8, there were only a few thousand remnants of the Songpu Division, which were compressed into several strongholds such as Wanjialing, Liu Qigu Liu, Tian Busu, and Jianlu Su, and they were already in a desperate situation. Although General Shunroku Hahata personally organized the airdrop of more than 200 officers below the rank of wing commander to the Wanjialing area, the battle situation still made Matsuura breathless.
The airdrop of hundreds of officers at one time was a unique thing for the Japanese army on the Chinese battlefield, and it also showed what kind of desperate situation the Matsuura Division had reached.
For Xue Yue and the Chinese army, victory seemed to be only one step away, but with this step, the Chinese army seemed to be unable to move any longer, because even the 74th Army suffered nearly half of the casualties.
Chiang Kai-shek in Wuhan was anxious and asked Xu Yongchang, the minister of military orders: "How is Xue Boling's offensive now?" ”
Minister of Military Orders Xu Yongchang
"The commission, Wanjialing has suffered great losses on both sides, and no one can make decisive progress. However, if it drags on any longer, Chief Xue's subordinates are afraid that they will become more and more unfavorable. On both sides of the Kexi and Passes, Okamura's 27th and 101st Divisions were desperately attacking to relieve the siege of Wanjialing. Chief Xue actually didn't have a few days left. ”
"Then how can you eat the remnants of Matsuura? Can you bring in some more troops? ”
"I'm afraid not. First, the distant water does not quench the thirst of the near, and second, there is no army to adjust. ”
Looking at Chiang Kai-shek's increasingly disappointed face, Xu Yongchang added: "Unless······ Unless Chief Xue is allowed to do his best, leave no reserves, and devote himself to a counterattack, there may still be a chance to win. These last five minutes were crucial, our army was in trouble, and the Japanese almost fell down, and then they were stronger than anyone else. ”
Chiang Kai-shek pondered for a moment and ordered: "Okay, you order the 1st Corps Commander Xue in the name of the Military Commission." All armies and divisions formed death squads to launch a final attack on Wanjialing, and the enemy was completely annihilated before 24 o'clock on October 9. ”
On the front line of De'an, Xue Yue is also wandering about this matter. In fact, this was the only way to defeat Matsuura in the end. Chiang Kai-shek's order undoubtedly made him make up his final mind.
Dedication to Double 10 Festival
On October 8, the situation on the entire Wanjialing battlefield became more and more severe. The enemy of the stars has broken through the pass and is about to cross the Nanxun line; Three infantry battalions of the 27th Division were swooping in from Jixi; The three tigers sent by the six generals of Shun Hata, under the command of Suzuki Harusatsu, advanced step by step along the Ruibu Road.
Now, the empty check of "Wanjialing Victory" written in advance is really difficult to ride. Wanjialing had become a problem for Chiang Kai-shek, and he called several times a day to inquire about the state of the war.
On the morning of the 8th, Chiang Kai-shek in Wuhan wanted to call Chen Cheng in Nanchang: "Resign, is Xue Boling reliable or not?" ”
"The report committee has always been a subordinate to employ people without doubt." Chen Cheng replied without hesitation.
Chiang Kai-shek said after a while: "Very good, very good!" You should be able to use people without suspicion! However, you tell Xue Boling to annihilate the 106th Division as soon as possible! ”
"The 106th Division of the Japanese Invaders can be completely annihilated······" Chen Cheng replied affirmatively.
Chen Cheng on the left, who is on the right? Yes, there are red envelopes
"Okay, when?" Chiang Kai-shek reacted quickly at this time, "You name an exact date." ”
"Three days ······"
"No way!" Chiang Kai-shek irritably denied, "It can't be more than the Double Tenth Festival at the latest!" ”
Seeing Chiang Kai-shek so irritable, Song Meiling stepped forward to comfort; "Darling, since the encirclement can't be annihilated, forget it. In terms of public opinion, we have a rhetoric, and the Political Department will solve it. What's more, from an official point of view, we have not expressed our attitude towards the battle situation in Wanjialing so far, nor have we published a war report. We can even deny that there was a plan to encircle and annihilate Wanjialing. You don't have to worry about it. ”
Chiang Kai-shek, on the contrary, said even more irritably: "You don't understand! You don't understand! You don't understand! You don't understand it at all! ”
Turning around, Chiang Kai-shek answered Xue Yue's phone again: "Boling, when will you be able to completely annihilate the Songpu Division?" When, exactly? Give me an exact time. ”
"It will take about three or four days to report to the commission.
"No! Absolutely not! Chiang Kai-shek said categorically, "I'll give you an exact time - 12 noon on October 10." I'm not consulting you, I'm ordering you to complete the attack on time! I don't care what means you use, no matter how many casualties you pay, you must complete the mission of annihilation on time! ”
When Xue Yue heard this, he calmed down: "My subordinates will never be dishonored!" ”
Chiang Kai-shek said "hmm" and hung up the phone.
October 10 was the Double Tenth Day of the Republic of China, and Chiang Kai-shek naturally hoped that Xue Yue would end the battle on the 10th and present the festival with a brilliant victory.
In fact, whether it is the chairman's command, or the situation on the battlefield is pressing, if it drags on for time, the victory will become a defeat! Therefore, Xue Yue immediately issued an order: "Each attacking force must organize a brave team of 250 to 500 people to act as the vanguard assault and launch a final attack on the 106th Division." Artillery preparations before the assault were completed before 18 o'clock, and an attack was launched at 19 o'clock in the darkness of the night, and the enemy's positions in front of each unit, such as Wanjialing, Jianlusu, Tianbusu, Biandan Mountain, and Yangjiashan, must be firmly occupied······ Those who fail to complete the task will be engaged in military law, and they will never be lenient! ”
On the afternoon of the 9th, all divisions of the Chinese army selected elite and strong troops to form a brave team, and the commanders of all units were all under the command of the spot, and even Xue Yue himself came to the front line. At 19 o'clock, after drinking the Zhuangxing wine, the officers and soldiers of the brave brigade launched the final blow to the last few strongholds such as Wanjialing, Liu Qigu Liu, Tian Busu, and Jianlu Su. The whole night of great war began. Under the onslaught of the Chinese army, the core positions of the Japanese army, such as Jianlusu, Wanjialing, Tianpusu, Liu, Liu, Pancun, the southwest highlands of Dajinshan, the highlands east of Jianlusu, Zhanggushan, the unnamed village in the northeast of Yangjiashan, and the highlands at the northern end of Yangjiashan, were successively conquered by the 4th and 66th armies, and the defense system of the 106th Division ceased to exist, and the divisions and regiments were completely separated.
One part of the 4th Army followed its brave team to attack from Dajin Mountain to the high ground at the eastern end of Jianlou Su, and the other part attacked and advanced to Biandan Mountain. Mt. Biandan is the exit of Matsuura Dream and the 101st Division of Dean, and is heavily guarded by the enemy. In view of the large enemy army on the mountain, people go up less often to hit stones with eggs, and go up more because the line of sight is too dark, they can't distinguish each other, and the usual white towel marks are not good at all tonight, and it is very easy to cause accidental injury.
Chen Rongji, commander of the 90th Division, ordered the brave members of the three battalions to go into battle barebacked, and killed those who touched their clothes. After the attack began, more than 1,000 barebacks rushed to Biandan Mountain in two groups under the cover of light and heavy firepower. As expected by Division Commander Chen, on the pitch-black Biandan Mountain, the officers and men of the two armies were mixed together, and no one could see who clearly. "Daridska?" The mountains were full of surprise. "Daridska?" "Porphyry!" As soon as a Japanese soldier opened his mouth to ask, he was stabbed down. The Japanese did not dare to "Daridska anymore", but the Grim Reaper was tightly entangled. Someone fished it out of his body and thought it was a companion, "Porphyry! A bayonet was plunged into the chest······ The brave team members couldn't open their mouths and buried their heads in the slaughter, like a group of hungry men gobbling up. After fighting in one go, the battlefield was counted, and more than 500 Japanese corpses were left on the battlefield.
At 20 o'clock, Wang Yaowu's troops advanced along the northern end of Zhanggu Mountain, which had a slower slope, and after gathering and annihilating the enemy's alert troops in white-knuckle combat, they attacked the enemy's main position, and after repeated battles, occupied the commanding heights of the mountain. Then, the Wang army attacked the enemy at Beixi Street, and the enemy resisted desperately with the fortifications near the small temple in the southeast of the town with friendly reinforcements, and the Chinese army could not attack for a long time. Later, Chinese reinforcements arrived, and the fierce battle lasted until 8 o'clock the next day, when they occupied Beixi Street. At the same time, the 159th Division of the 66th Army, which attacked Wanjialing and its villages to the west, also achieved a great victory. After annihilating the Soviet Japanese forces in Nie Village and Tianpu, the unit attacked from the west side of Wanjialing to the top of its mountain. At that time, a regiment of the 4th Army was fighting with the enemy halfway up the mountain. The Japanese army resisted stubbornly, and the Chinese army made difficult progress. Due to the arrival of the 159th Division, the Japanese army was routed after half an hour of melee, and the Chinese army finally regained Wanjialing.
In the early morning of the 10th, good news came one after another. Except for the remnants of more than 1,000 enemy troops who fled to Zhanggushan and Changling, the Japanese troops of the 106th Division's four wings in the Wanjialing area were all annihilated by the Chinese army. Unfortunately, during the battle that night, the 1st Division of the 4th Army and others rushed to a distance of less than 100 meters from the headquarters of the 106th Division several times, and one prisoner admitted after the battle that all the service personnel of the 106th Division Headquarters were dispatched to participate in the battle, even Junrokuro Matsuura
He also had a gun. If the Chinese army had advanced another 100 meters, Junrokuro Matsuura would have been captured or committed suicide by seppuku. However, due to the darkness of the night, the Chinese army did not know about the big "prey" in front of them, and they also suffered a lot of self-inflicted damage, and finally fell short, resulting in Junrokuro Matsuura escaping.
Near noon, Chiang Kai-shek's call arrived: "Boling, how is the battle?" ”
Xue Yue replied unequivocally: "Report to the commission, the staff has overcome Wanjialing, completely annihilated the Japanese invaders, the enemy chief Songpu was only spared, the corpses are blocked in the valley, between the mountains, forests and streams, and the blood is sprinkled all over. ”
"Good! Good! Very good! Very good! Boling, there will be Chinese and foreign reporters on the battlefield to cover the scene, what do you think? Chiang Kai-shek was a little out of breath and his heart beat a little excitedly, "I mean that Chinese and foreign reporters should be allowed to go to Wanjialing to have a look on the spot, so as to publicize the victory of Wanjialing to the world!" Do you think it's okay? ”
"The report committee, all the officers and men of the department welcome Chinese and foreign reporters to come to cover the news as soon as possible, and the subordinates will entertain the reporters with the Japanese food in the spoils of war."
This time, Chiang Kai-shek hung up the phone in laughter.
Subsequently, Xue Yue sent a telegram to the Military Commission: "Although the enemy's attempt to intersperse roundabout operations has been frustrated, I have concentrated on the siege and have not completely annihilated the enemy, which is very regrettable. ”
However, in any case, the battle of Wanjialing dealt a devastating blow to almost an entire division of the Japanese army, destroying more than 10,000 enemies, capturing nearly 50 artillery pieces of various types, more than 200 light and heavy machine guns, thousands of rifles, transporting hundreds of livestock, and especially capturing more than 100 Japanese officers and men. This was a major victory for the Chinese army.
On October 10, the day of the National Day, Chiang Kai-shek smiled after receiving the report of the great victory at Wanjialing. At 4 o'clock in the afternoon, amid a wave of congratulations and praises, he personally drafted a telegram to commend Xue Yue's various departments: "Investigating the battle of Wanjialing, all armies launched a large-scale counteroffensive and annihilated more than 10,000 enemies······ As for the rewards of various ministries, in addition to the 50,000 yuan that should be given by Chief Chen Cheng, the chairman of the committee will also be rewarded with 50,000 yuan to encourage them. ”
A bonus of 100,000 yuan was awarded to 100,000 officers and soldiers who participated in the war, and each person was given one yuan. It is not that Chairman Chiang is stingy, but that the Nationalist Government's money bag is too dry. Reading through the "Biography of Zhang Zizhong", it can be seen that Lieutenant General Zhang Zizhong, who was already the commander-in-chief of the group army in the early days of the Anti-Japanese War, had only enough food and clothing for the whole family, and his daughter had no money to be hospitalized when she was suffering from a sudden illness.
Although the 106th Division escaped the fate of total annihilation, it was an absolutely indisputable fact that it suffered heavy losses, and even Okamura Ninji later admitted that the division had suffered a devastating blow. In addition, according to the confession of the Japanese army Zhongshan Ted who was later captured: "In this battle, only 2,300 officers and men of the Songpu Division were rescued except for the frontal troops who stayed on the Nanxun Road and were not injured after the battle. ”
When the news of the disastrous defeat of the 106th Division reached Japan, the Japanese government and the opposition were shocked and despised each other, so when the reinforcements heard that they had been recruited into the division, they all thought it was ominous, and some even cried bitterly.
Major General Tang Yongliang, who was the commander of the 141st Division of the 32nd Army of the 1st Corps at that time, later recalled: "After the Battle of Wanjialing, both our army and the Japanese army withdrew from the place, and the local people had fled, and the battlefield was a bleak scene. What I saw a year after the war was that about 10 square kilometers of land around the Wanjialing battlefield were covered with cemeteries of Japanese soldiers and our troops. The bones, steel helmets, saddles, ammunition boxes, gas cylinders, gas masks, and other miscellaneous items of the Japanese army's baggage soldiers can be found everywhere. Many of the skeletons wore rubber shoes with their big toes separated from the other four toes, apparently Japanese bones. Some of the bones were rotted by a large pile of maggots, and the maggots turned into pupa, and the pupae became flies, and the pupal shells were piled up on the skeletons as high as a foot. ”
Xue Yue later summed up the entire course of the operation and pointed out: The Japanese "attacked the 106th Division and the 27th Division along the Ruiwu Road to the south, and it seemed that the 106th Division was annihilated by us." When the enemy's 106th Division arrived at Wanjialing, it had formed the focus of operations, and time and space were more important than any other aspect. I boldly dispatched troops from Nanxun and Ruiwu to Wanjialing, which was in line with the principles of 'grasping the fighter planes,' 'striving for the initiative,' and 'showing hostile intentions,' so the Wanjialing Annihilation War was first and foremost appropriate in operational guidance. In addition, on the Dexing Highway, I had already built a multi-line reserve position, about 30 kilometers long from Xingzi to De'an, and fought hard with the enemy's 101st Division for two months, resisting step by step, abandoning an inch of land without a fight, and really benefiting from the multi-line reserve position, and the perseverance and composure of the garrison troops, and retaining the freedom to move positions.
In addition, in the course of the entire operation, the heroic and tenacious fighting spirit of the Chinese army as a whole, the operational method of flexibly maneuvering and concentrating superior forces to fight a war of annihilation, and the strict and orderly organization and command of the Chinese army have all provided important enlightenment for the Chinese army's future war of resistance on the frontal battlefield.
After the news of Wanjialing's victory came out, Nanchang, Wuhan, Changsha, Xiangtan, Changde, Guiyang, Fuzhou, Xinjiang, and other places all held congratulatory meetings, and 23 people, including He Yingqin, Chen Cheng, Cheng Qian, Yu Hanmou, Zhang Zhizhong, Tang Shizun, Ma Hongkui, and Sheng Shicai, as well as people from all walks of life in Jiangxi Province, Guangdong Provincial Committee of Comfort Frontline Soldiers, Shaanxi Province Anti-Enemy Support Association, Guizhou Province People from all walks of life to resist the enemy, Wanzai County, Jiangxi Province, and other social organizations, organs, and conferences all sent congratulatory telegrams. General Ye Ting, commander of the New Fourth Army and Xue Yue's former colleague, telegraphed: "Nanxun has won a great victory, and all the ugly ones have been annihilated." Bang Hong is in danger, as the guarantee of Jiang and Han, and the flat type pass, Taierzhuang is full of three, and the reputation is immortal. ”
During the entire battle to defend Wuhan, which lasted more than four months, the Nanxun Line operation was the most arduous operation and the one in which the Japanese army suffered the greatest setbacks. However, the victory of the Chinese army on the local battlefield did not change the unfavorable situation of the Wuhan defensive circle, nor did it curb the arrogance of Okamura Ninji who swore to take Wuhan, and at the same time that he deployed and carried out this unfortunate Nanxun Line operation, his strongest 6th Division conquered the last gate east of Wuhan - Tianjiazhen Fortress.