After the mission was assigned, the officers looked at each other. Song Han hesitated for a long time before finally unable to hold back and asked in a low voice, "Commander, the terrain here is complex and suitable for concealment. The attacking side often suffers more losses. The Japanese are very strong in combat, and the student soldiers are useless. With only the Third Company and the Reconnaissance Company, I'm afraid we are not very confident. If the attack is thwarted and the casualties are too heavy, they will take the opportunity to break out of the encirclement, and the situation will be out of control. I suggest that my First Company also join the attack and break through with superior forces. Under a surprise attack, we can take Caopingbang in one fell swoop and wipe out the Tanikawa Battalion."
His words immediately drew nods of agreement from the others. Concentrating superior forces to forcefully break through, without giving the enemy a chance to breathe, and preventing piecemeal tactics would instead reduce casualties and expand the gains.
The officers inside the room were either seasoned veterans or Whampoa Military Academy graduates who had received formal military academy education, so they were quite clear about this point.
At this moment, Ning Zhiheng revealed a sinister and ferocious smile. He gently picked up the map in his hand, smiled coldly, and said, "Who said I was going to launch a surprise attack on Caopingbang? There are better ways to deal with them. I'll make them jump out on their own! They're asking for it!"
Upon hearing this, everyone in the room was startled. No one spoke, and they all stared intently at Ning Zhiheng, who then offered an explanation.
Ning Zhiheng had been thinking about how to deal with the Tanikawa Brigade in Caopingbang all night and already had his own plan.
There is a very effective way to deal with enemies hiding in the reeds and tall grass: set fire to them. This method is very effective, especially in late autumn when the reeds grow very lushly and almost cover the entire wetland. Once set on fire, the fire will spread rapidly unless there is a waterway to block it.
In his previous life, Ning Zhiheng personally experienced a fire that burned down a reed marsh. At that time, a swamp needed to be developed into a new industrial zone. The price was agreed upon, but the local residents insisted on harvesting all the reeds before they would give up the land, which would take a long time.
Because of the tight construction schedule, the developer could not afford to delay and naturally could not agree. When the stalemate continued, the desperate developer sent people to set fire to the reeds at night. The fire burned all the reeds in the area. The next morning, Ning Zhiheng, one of the people handling the incident, was stunned when he arrived at the scene and saw the white expanse of land.
The scene also revealed the carcasses of many small animals that lived in the wetlands. They had either been burned to death or suffocated by large amounts of smoke and toxic gases. This scene remained vivid in his memory.
Since seeing the map drawn by Sun Jiacheng and looking at the terrain marked on it, Ning Zhiheng secretly rejoiced. It was a peninsula-shaped reed highland surrounded by water on three sides. In this limited area, as long as he deployed heavy troops to block the northern exit and then set it on fire, the entire Caopingbang would become a sea of fire. He could easily burn the Guchuan Brigade into a group of roast pigs with almost no effort. Even if they were not burned to death, they would be suffocated to death by the smoke.
The saying goes, "If you have a path to heaven but choose not to, you'll find yourself in hell." These Japanese thought they had outsmarted the situation, hiding deep in the reeds, which was indeed a good place to conceal their tracks. Unfortunately, it was also a dead end.
Therefore, Ning Zhiheng was confident and settled all four squadrons around the area. He had no intention of attacking and was just waiting to catch any stragglers. If the battle went as smoothly as he expected, it would be an extremely easy hunting battle.
"Bring all the gasoline we have left right away. We'll need it this time. With so much gasoline, I don't believe the Tanikawa Squad can escape!" Ning Zhiheng slammed his fist on the table and said viciously.
It turns out that a large amount of gasoline was found in these warehouses during this period. Originally, it was supposed to be transported to the other side of the Huangpu River, but Ning Zhiheng did not agree. His troops still had thirty trucks, which needed a lot of fuel. In addition, during the retreat, a large number of trucks would definitely be needed to transport supplies, especially the heavy artillery brigade. If the fuel supply was not available, they would all become a lump of iron. Therefore, this gasoline was a very useful military supply, so it was left behind and is now being used.
Ning Zhiheng continued, "Based on my judgment, the Guchuan Brigade will soon leave this hiding place and relocate. We cannot let them escape from our grasp. We must act immediately and block the Guchuan Brigade at Caopingbang as quickly as possible to complete the battle plan and then wipe out this stubborn enemy!"
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