Chapter 280: Completely Subdued
In the following days, the troops from the three counties of Wutaishan, Xiangding, and Mengxian all began to mobilize.
Even Su Yaoyang probably never imagined the immense power that the Shanxi Militia, this war machine, could unleash when operating at full capacity.
When he began to tally the troops and family forces under his command, even he himself was stunned.
Several infantry regiments（don’t ask for specific numbers, ask and it’s arbitrary numbers, emphasizing flexibility）, one supplemental regiment, two armored regiments, two heavy artillery regiments, one anti-aircraft regiment, two aviation squadrons（over a hundred aircraft）, plus two engineer regiments, two pontoon bridge regiments, and other support troops.
With such powerful forces, no wonder Xiaozuka Yoshio resorted to assassination to try to kill him.
In Wutaishan County, after the Military Intelligence Bureau conducted a dragnet search and purge, almost all intelligence points were cleared out. Even the surviving spies could only cower in corners like rats, living in constant fear, afraid that one day a Military Intelligence Bureau truck would suddenly stop in front of them.
On the highways connecting the several county seats, leisurely ox carts were no longer seen; instead, there were endless columns of infantry marching in neat steps.
Batch after batch of full-strength elite infantry regiments, countless soldiers wearing German-style M35 helmets and German gray uniforms, rode in trucks roaring past. These trucks converged into a dull thunder, with the dust they kicked up obscuring the sky.
Two armored regiments equipped with Sherman medium tanks and Caudron light tanks, their tracks crushing the road surface, emitted deafening roars and squeaks, making the earth tremble.
Farther away, Jinsha Ridge Airport and Jiuqu River Airport had become sleepless hives.
Two aviation squadrons, over a hundred F4U Corsair fighters, P-47 fighters, shiny silver B-25 Mitchell medium bombers, and SBD2 Dauntless dive bombers with shark-mouth paint schemes, were neatly arrayed on both sides of the runways.
Ground crew scurried like worker ants under the fuselages, refueling, loading bombs, and inspecting. The massive roars from engine tests could be heard clearly from over ten miles away.
In addition, the anti-aircraft regiment’s anti-aircraft guns were deployed at all key nodes. The engineer regiments and pontoon bridge regiments carried large amounts of equipment and materials, ready at any time to clear all obstacles for the army’s advance.
The truck convoys of the logistics troops, fully loaded with ammunition, fuel, and food, shuttled ceaselessly between the various units day and night.
Even Su Yaoyang himself probably never imagined before this the immense power he could unleash when mobilizing all his forces.
In the temporary underground headquarters, Pi Ruoyu handed a just-completed tally of troops and equipment to Bai Chongxi.
When Bai Chongxi’s gaze swept over the densely written paper, he was instantly stunned.
This was no longer something that could be described as a “militia” or “local armed force.”
This was a powerful army with independent army, air force, armored, artillery, and logistics systems, capable of independently launching a campaign!
He looked at the dense blue arrows on the sand table representing his subordinate troops, then at the somewhat sparse red markers representing the Japanese First Army around Taiyuan.
A surge of unprecedented pride and confidence welled up in his heart.
At the same time, Biao Chongxi finally truly understood Xiaozuka Yoshio’s fear from the bottom of his heart.
Anyone facing such a powerful army entrenched right next to them would be unable to rest or eat in peace.
He turned to Su Yaoyang and said, “Now I understand why that old Japanese ghost Xiaozuka Yoshio is desperate to kill you.”
His finger heavily tapped the position of Taiyuan on the sand table. “If it were me, I’d do the same thing.”
As this colossal beast, the Shanxi Militia, began to bare its ferocious fangs, the prey on the other side finally sensed this deadly danger.
After all, the mobilization of tens of thousands of troops, the assembly of over a hundred tanks, and the incessant takeoff and landing roars from the two airports could not be completely concealed no matter what.
For a moment, the entire Japanese intelligence network in Shanxi was like a hornet’s nest that had been poked, with countless telegrams marked “urgent” and “top priority” flying like snowflakes to the First Army headquarters in Taiyuan.
“Report! Large-scale Chinese troop assembly detected in the Wutaishan County direction, unit designation unknown, equipped with large numbers of automatic weapons!」
“Report! Chinese artillery positions discovered on the outskirts of Dingxiang County. Observations suggest heavy guns with calibers over 150mm!」
“Report! Our reconnaissance aircraft encountered attacks from new-type Chinese fighters over Datong. Extremely fast speed, fierce firepower—our aircraft was instantly shot down!」
One shocking intelligence report after another landed on Xiaozuka Yoshio’s desk.
The face of this Japanese lieutenant general, renowned for his composure and cunning, had turned extremely grim.
He had originally thought that after assassinating Su Yaoyang, the Shanxi Militia would either collapse or fall into chaos for a period. But reality had slapped him hard in the face.
Not only did the opponent not descend into chaos, but with unimaginable efficiency, they assembled a terrifying force capable of crushing his entire First Army.
“Baka yaro!”
Xiaozuka Yoshio could no longer maintain his composure. He slammed his fist on the desk, making the teacup rattle. “Su Yaoyang… what the hell does he want? Has he gone mad?
I just sent people for a sneak attack, and now he wants full-scale war with my First Army?”
Nearby, Chief of Staff Kusayama Hideyoshi also looked grave. In his trembling voice, he said, “Commander, intelligence shows this Chinese troop assembly is unprecedented in scale. Their target is probably… probably Taiyuan!”
The entire headquarters fell into dead silence. Everyone was terrified by this dreadful inference.
“The entire army… enter highest state of combat readiness!”
Xiaozuka Yoshio almost roared the order. “Send a telegram to North China Area Army headquarters! Immediately! Tell them my unit is under siege by Chinese main forces and in dire peril! Request urgent reinforcements!”
……
Meanwhile, in Beiping.
Inside the North China Area Army headquarters, Commander Tadashi Tada was leisurely sipping a cup of fine West Lake Longjing tea.
In his impression, the situation in Shanxi had always been stable, and Xiaozuka Yoshio was a reliable subordinate.
When the communications staff handed him Xiaozuka Yoshio’s first plea-for-aid telegram, he almost laughed in anger.
“Two divisions? Is Xiaozuka joking with me?”
Tadashi Tada set down his teacup and said displeasedly, “He’s a full-fledged imperial lieutenant general, scared like this by a local militia? And he wants me to send him two divisions? Does he think imperial troops are blown in by the wind?”
However, his mockery didn’t last long.
Soon, second and third telegrams with even more urgent wording arrived in quick succession. Finally, when the detailed roster of Shanxi Militia troops and equipment—gathered at great risk by the First Army’s intelligence department—was transmitted via encrypted radio, the smile on Tadashi Tada’s face completely froze.
He stared fixedly at the roster, his mouth opening wider and wider.
Elite soldiers in German uniforms wielding submachine guns and semi-automatic rifles, swarms of Sherman tanks, massive air fleets of over a hundred aircraft including fighters and bombers.
Tadashi Tada’s breathing quickened. He suddenly looked up at his chief of staff, his voice altered: “This… is this real? Are you sure this intelligence is accurate?”
The chief of staff swallowed hard and nodded: “Commander… the First Army has confirmed it multiple times. The intelligence… is reliable. They even attached photos of some equipment…”
Tadashi Tada snatched the blurry but still identifiable photos, his hands beginning to tremble uncontrollably.
He felt like he wasn’t looking at intelligence on Chinese forces.
If not for the familiar Chinese characters on them, he would almost think he was facing the German Wehrmacht sweeping across the European battlefield or the terrifying industrial might of the United States expeditionary force from across the ocean!
A chill shot from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head.
“Baka yarou!”
All that came from Tadashi Tada’s mouth was this powerless Japanese curse. His usually dignified face was now ashen.
He felt his back drenched in cold sweat.
Don’t be fooled by his position as North China Area Army commander, commanding nearly 300,000 imperial elites, seeming well-staffed and imposing.
Only he knew how precarious his seat was—like sitting on the mouth of a volcano ready to erupt at any moment!
His operational tasks were far too heavy!
He had to control the vast territories of nearly six provinces—Hebei, Shanxi, Shandong, northern Henan, Chahar, Suiyuan—with fewer than 300,000 troops!
And on this land, his opponents included the elusive Eighth Route Army, the Shanxi-Sui Army entrenched in Shanxi, the tough and battle-hardened Fu Zuoyi’s forces, and the elite First Theater main forces led by Wei Lihuang… all told, over 800,000 Chinese troops!
He was like a tightrope walker over a bottomless abyss, every step cautious and tentative, one slip meaning total defeat and annihilation.
Now, on the Shanxi chessboard, this powerful armed force that even he found chilling had suddenly emerged, baring its fangs without concealment, clearly intent on devouring his First Army.
One of his most capable subordinates, Xiaozuka Yoshio, had shamelessly sent the most urgent pleas for aid.
This was a massive headache no matter how you looked at it! A huge trouble that could collapse his entire North China strategy!
Thinking of this, Tadashi Tada forced himself to calm down. He turned to his chief of staff, Kasahara Yukio, who stood gravely by the desk, and asked in a hoarse voice:
“This Shanxi Militia and Su Yaoyang—I’ve heard of his exploits often these past two years. But I remember Su Yaoyang was usually low-key, hunkered down developing in those poor Shanxi mountains. How did he suddenly adopt this posture for a decisive battle, preparing to attack Taiyuan?”
A flicker of hesitation crossed Kasahara Yukio’s face. He lowered his head slightly, as if weighing his words. After a long moment, he said in an almost whisper: “Commander… it’s because Su Yaoyang encountered some matters a few days ago.”
Then, Kasahara Yukio held nothing back, recounting in full detail how, a few days prior, Xiaozuka Yoshio had bypassed Area Army headquarters and unauthorizedly ordered the “Chrysanthemum Agency” to assassinate Su Yaoyang, only for it to end in failure.
As Kasahara Yukio spoke, Tadashi Tada’s face turned from pale to green, green to purple, and finally iron-black.
His chest heaved violently, his hands gripping the edge of the desk tightly.
When he heard the end—that the assassination had failed, enraging Su Yaoyang and leading to this full-scale war—Tadashi Tada could no longer suppress his fury.
“Baka yarou!”
This roar was louder than any before, filled with boundless anger and disappointment. He slammed the desk, sending all the papers flying.
“Xiaozuka Yoshio, you idiot! Useless at success, expert at failure!”
He now understood everything.
This wasn’t some strategic Chinese counteroffensive—this was pure, unrelenting personal revenge forced by the pigheaded stupidity of his subordinate.
Thinking of it, Tadashi Tada wanted to rush straight to the First Army headquarters in Taiyuan and cleave open that idiot Xiaozuka Yoshio’s wooden head to see if it contained brains or rice paste!
A full Imperial Japanese Army lieutenant general, commander of a main Area Army corps, resorting to shady assassination!
Didn’t he know that if such a tactic failed, it would inevitably provoke the opponent’s unrelenting mad retaliation?
That was basic military common sense!
And not only did he do it, he botched it—that was the most unforgivable part.
If the assassination had succeeded, Su Yaoyang dead and the militia in chaos, Xiaozuka Yoshio would be an imperial hero.
But now, with failure, not only unsolved but a massive problem created, he was an imperial criminal!
Kasahara Yukio eyed Tadashi Tada’s pitch-black face and twitching lips from rage, cautiously probing: “Commander, what… what do we do now? Just sit by and let Xiaozuka Yoshio be wiped out by that Chinese militia?”
Tadashi Tada nearly blurted out, “Let him die!”
But the words caught at his lips, and he forcibly swallowed his rage.
He took a deep breath, forcing calm. He was the North China Area Army commander, not some private on guard duty at headquarters gate—such irresponsible words couldn’t be spoken.
He closed his eyes, rapidly weighing pros and cons in his mind.
He couldn’t ignore it.
Absolutely couldn’t ignore it.
Taiyuan was the core of imperial rule in Shanxi, the cornerstone of the entire Shanxi strategy.
If Taiyuan fell, the situation across Shanxi would trigger an immediate chain reaction, a snowballing collapse.
Those Chinese forces previously pinned down by the Imperial Army—Central Army, Shanxi-Sui Army, Eighth Route Army—would emerge from every corner like wolves scenting blood.
Especially that sly opportunist Yan Xishan—he absolutely wouldn’t miss this once-in-a-lifetime chance!
If all of Shanxi fell, Xiaozuka Yoshio would face certain death, seppuku the least of it.
And he, as North China Area Army commander, wouldn’t fare much better. Imperial General Headquarters investigation would pin him with “mismanagement of personnel and command,” inescapable—relieved of duty or court-martial possible.
Thinking of this, Tadashi Tada felt a splitting headache. He opened his eyes, filled with helplessness and exhaustion.
Finally, he could only let out a long, frustrated sigh.
“Sigh…”
He waved his hand weakly, issuing to Kasahara Yukio the order he least wanted to give but had no choice.
“Telegram order… the 27th Division stationed in Hejian and the Independent Mixed 7th Brigade in Zhangjiakou—mobilize immediately and rush to Taiyuan!”
Saying this seemed to drain all his strength.
Pulling these two mobile units from Hejian and Zhangjiakou meant massive gaps in defenses on the North China Plain and Chahar. It was like robbing Peter to pay Paul, a huge gamble that nothing major would happen in Chahar or Hebei during this time.
And all this just to clean up the mess from Xiaozuka Yoshio’s idiotic blunder.
…………
While the Japanese North China Area Army was forced into robbing Peter to pay Paul due to a stupid assassination, entering strategic passivity, the Shanxi Militia’s underground headquarters was not all harmony.
A small “uproar” was unfolding.
“Commander! Deputy Commander!”
Second Regiment Commander Huang Guantao burst into the command room. His dark face was full of impatience and dissatisfaction, his voice so loud it startled Su Yaoyang and Bai Chongxi, who were quietly discussing at the sand table.
He rushed to them in a few steps, saluted, then impatiently shouted: “Commander, everyone’s got tasks. First, Fifth, and Sixth Regiments got main assault missions, even the supplemental regiment snagged reserve duty. Why are we Second, Third, and Fourth Regiments left to guard the house?”
Seeing the anxious, aggrieved Huang Guantao, Su Yaoyang couldn’t help but find it amusing. He pointed to a nearby chair: “Old Huang, sit down and talk.
What, you unhappy about some rest?”
Huang Guantao wouldn’t sit, neck stiff: “Commander, we’re soldiers—we fight!
With a big battle against the Japs coming up, taking their Taiyuan nest, such huge merit—you won’t let us join, the brothers won’t accept it!”
Su Yaoyang’s smile faded, patiently explaining: “Old Huang, listen.
White Commander and I mainly considered that your Second, Third, and Fourth Regiments just returned from that hellhole Yichang after hard fighting, extremely fatigued.
Plus just supplemented with a bunch of new recruits—veterans and rookies need time to gel, combat power not fully restored. So don’t rush now, train properly, turn those greenhorns into veterans—that’s the real business.”
“But Commander… we…” Huang Guantao wanted to argue, believing his troops could still fight.
“No buts!”
Silent Bai Chongxi wouldn’t indulge him. Face stern, an aura of authority emanated, choking Huang Guantao’s words.
Bai Chongxi’s sharp gaze fixed on him, coldly asking: “Huang Guantao, tell me—after returning from Yichang, how many casualties in your Second Regiment? How many new recruits supplemented? Truth!”
Under Bai Chongxi’s piercing gaze, Huang Guantao deflated. Head down, voice small: “Report to White Commander… 862 casualties, supplemented… 786 new recruits.」
Bai Chongxi sneered coldly, pressing: “Do you think your Second Regiment has restored combat power now?
Those recruits haven’t even warmed to their rifles—you drag them to the front? To die? A unit down nearly a third veterans—you dare say no combat power issue?”
“I…”
Huang Guantao was speechless, face flushed, head low, hands unsure where to go.
Bai Chongxi slammed the sand table edge with a crisp smack.
Bai Chongxi’s voice echoed in the large command room, each word like a cold slap across Huang Guantao’s face.
“Nonsense! What do you think war is? Child’s play?”
Bai Chongxi’s finger nearly poked Huang Guantao’s nose: “Sending greenhorns who can’t even work a bolt to battle—you calling that leading to glory? No! Murder! Gambling their young lives on your laughable vanity! You’re out to kill them!”
His voice grew harsher, brimming with undeniable authority and sharpness.
“This isn’t bravery! Recklessness! Irresponsibility to every soldier’s life!”
“Listen, Huang Guantao! Want to fight? Everyone in the army wants victory!
But first, train your unit thoroughly! Drill those recruits into soldiers! Otherwise, forget battlefield—you may not keep your Second Regiment commander seat!”
This barrage of merciless reprimands hammered Huang Guantao like blows.
His once flushed, impatient face turned ashen, then pale.
His raised head drooped bit by bit, straight back slumped, like his spine was pulled out—no more the bold swagger from entry.
His lips moved, but no rebuttal came. He knew every word from Deputy Commander White was right.
“Yes… my unit… knows its mistake.”
Huang Guantao’s face burned red, shamefaced.
He backed away two steps silently, saluted Su Yaoyang and Bai Chongxi, then turned wordlessly, trudging heavily out of the command room.
Seeing Huang Guantao leave speechless, Su Yaoyang inwardly gave Bai Chongxi a thumbs-up.
Truly, the old ginger is hottest.
He was commander but young, shallow experience.
With these fierce veterans from Nanjing days, sometimes hard to be too harsh.
Bai Chongxi was different—decades soldiering, commanded million-man armies, prestige and seniority there.
Him playing bad cop was perfect.
A few words tamed this fearless Huang Guantao completely docile, speechless. A skill worth learning.
