I get you, but to my ears, the phrasing itself implies it's part of the sentence (unless the common phrasing was different back then). Most people would say "T

I get you, but to my ears, the phrasing itself implies it's part of the sentence (unless the common phrasing was different back then). Most people would say "The number _preceding_ this sentence". "of this" sounds like it's part of the sentence.