"Make amends? How can we make amends? Niangziguan Pass is lost, the 4th Brigade is wiped out, how can we possibly make amends?!"
Yoshio Shinotsuka was furious: "Investigate! Investigate! Investigate! Find out immediately what happened with that Chinese tank group, and find out exactly how Niangziguan was lost. You bastards, you've completely disgraced the Empire!"
Operations Chief Ono Masaji, his face pale and trembling, said, "General, please calm down! What we need to do now is to find out the intentions of the Chinese army!"
"They'd rather bomb Niangziguan Pass flat than not destroy the 4th Brigade and its supplies! That shows they never intended to occupy it!"
"Drawing the Second Army westward and then ambushing them with tank formations shouldn't be their main attack direction..."
Ono Shoji came to the sand table and pointed to the tank markings in the encirclement area, saying, "We thought of the encirclement as a meat grinder, but the Chinese army dismantled this meat grinder and instead ambushed the Second Army!"
"Is it really just about eliminating our manpower???"
Upon hearing this, everyone fell into deep thought and agreed that it made sense.
“Ono-kun is right. The Chinese army’s intention is definitely not to ambush the Second Army. If they wanted to ambush, they could have easily ambushed our First Army. Why would they go around to Niangziguan?” Nishimura Shunsuke analyzed.
Yoshio Shinotsuka frowned, looking thoughtfully at the sand table in front of him.
He felt that Ono Shoji and Nishimura Shunsuke made sense.
So, is this a trap set by the Chinese army, or a signal?
A trap?
No......
If it were a trap, they wouldn't have needed to bomb Niangziguan to the ground!
So where exactly are they going to attack?
Where to hit?
Just then, Sasaki, the head of the Special Operations Division, seemed to realize something, and his pupils suddenly contracted. "Is it possible that they're planning to attack Taiyuan?!"
"Attack Taiyuan???"
Yoshio Shinotsuka was stunned for a moment, then shook his head: "How is that possible!??"
"Our Taiyuan city is impregnable, how can they possibly attack it!"
"With those crappy guns???"
"wrong!!!"
Yoshio Shinotsuka was startled, realizing something, and looked at the sand table: "We underestimated them. These Chinese troops not only have heavy artillery, but also tank formations, which means they have the ability to attack fortified positions!"
"By attacking Niangziguan, we can lure our troops there and at the same time draw the Second Army westward. This is a diversionary tactic!"
"The real killer move is to attack Taiyuan!!!"
......
"General Shinotsuka! General Shinotsuka—!!!"
Suddenly, a lieutenant colonel strode in, shouting loudly.
"General Shinotsuka! We have intelligence! We just received intelligence!!!"
"What is it? Speak quickly! What intelligence?!"
Yoshio Shinotsuka immediately stepped forward and grabbed the lieutenant colonel's clothes.
"General Shinotsuka! All our strongholds near Taiyuan have lost contact; our men have all perished!"
"They...they're really going to attack Taiyuan!!!"
Yoshio Shinotsuka was shocked and his face was filled with horror.
"quick--!"
"Order all troops to return to reinforce immediately—!!!"
"Taiyuan absolutely cannot be lost!!! Absolutely cannot be lost! Ah! Ah!"
Yoshio Shinotsuka roared loudly, his face contorted with rage, like a furious lion.
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