Comrade, Your Ingredients Are Too Complicated

Chapter 290 Seven and a half: Master Ba, save me!

 At nine o'clock in the evening on July 1st, commanders of the three main brigade levels and above gathered at the Meishan Conference Hall in Taiyuan.

Before the deputy commander-in-chief and his party arrived at the scene, the excitement in the hall was as lively as a temple fair during the Chinese New Year in the provincial capital city, and the sounds of reminiscing in various dialects could be heard dozens of meters away.

 Since the army was reorganized and moved to Jin Province, this was the first time there was a large-scale meeting of this level.

When Huang He entered the room, he found that all the seats had been divided according to division level, and the comrades all sat in an orderly manner behind their division commanders or deputy division commanders.

The first column on the left is the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region, where there are a total of twenty-five commanders. The person sitting in the front row was a little thin and looked like he was recovering from a serious illness.

The seats of the 120th Division are in the center of the Meishan conference room. Their number is still the smallest among the three main forces, with only fifteen people attending the meeting.

Mr. Huzi was smoking a pipe and chatting with the person on his left from time to time. The atmosphere between the two seemed very subtle.

The last team was naturally the 129th Division, because both the division commander and the brigade commander were pulled to the base area in southeastern Shanxi by the Yellow River. The person sitting at the front at this time was an infantry expert.

Since the troops at all levels are relatively close to Taiyuan, a total of twenty-nine commanders came to attend the meeting this time.

 It is worth mentioning that our commander Li Daju is mixed in the column.

It's just that now he is sitting beside his deputy division commander like a good baby, without any of the carelessness he used to have.

Huang He's position was arranged next to the brigade commander. After taking his seat, he began to look around quietly, quietly observing the unfamiliar faces in the two columns on the left.

 Suddenly, he was lightly elbowed on the waist.

"Old Huang, what are you looking at? Why didn't you say hello to me when you came?"

“I heard from Brigadier Chen that you went to the southeastern Shanxi base area to test new weapons this afternoon. Why is something so mysterious that you have to go all the way?”

“Next time something similar happens, remember to take me with you. I have been studying military theory for a month, and now my head is buzzing every day.”

Facing Li Yunlong’s complaint, Huang He glanced at his fellow villager with great sympathy.

Since the infantry expert came to Taiyuan, whenever he had free time, he would drag his apprentice to do various types of tactical deductions. The high-intensity study schedule almost cost Lao Li half his life.

Originally, Huang He wanted to take Li Yunlong with him to relax today, but the deputy teacher was teaching him a lesson at that time. In order not to waste the time of the big guys, he had to give up his fellow villagers.

 “Next time, definitely next time!”

“The new weapons are larger-caliber rockets, which have nothing to do with your Marine Corps for the time being. But you don’t have to worry, the next wave will be your paratroopers’ equipment.”

“By the way, who is sitting in the first row of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region? I don’t think I have ever seen that person in the army before.”

At the end of the Hundred Regiment War, Huang He had the honor to meet the deputy commander of the 115th Division, and even made friends with the commander surnamed Cheng who did not want casualties.

But today’s situation is different. The people leading the team from the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region are very unfamiliar.

Hearing Huang He's question, Li Yunlong showed a look of disdain on his face. He said before the meeting officially started:

“Aren’t you Mr. Ye a good dragon? Who asked me to help introduce him before?”

“The people sitting at the front of each column must be from the three main forces.”

Before the words were finished, the host of the meeting had already stepped onto the podium. The entire venue fell silent in an instant, and even Captain Li was forced to stop explaining.

Looking at the familiar faces in the audience, the deputy general staff officer showed a kind smile.

"Today is really lively. Many old friends who haven't seen each other for a long time have shown up. Before the meeting officially begins, let us welcome the return of the tiger in the forest with warm applause!" As soon as these words came out, Huang He suddenly realized.

 Some time ago, he heard the news that the only fifth-level general among the mysterious forces in the northwest was about to return. Unexpectedly, he actually saw him today.

 After the applause ended, the deputy general staff officer took off the dustproof cloth on the wall and began to speak to the four maps:

“The main purpose of calling everyone here is to discuss the arrangements and plans of the troops in the second half of this year. According to reliable intelligence, the enemy has strengthened the troops in Suiyuan, Chahar and Ji Province.”

"Although various signs indicate that the Japanese have no intention of attacking Shanxi. But we cannot sit still and wait for death. The fruits of victory are hard-won. The common people do not want to experience the Battle of Xinkou and the Defense of Taiyuan again."

“Headquarters has decided! Send troops north to support the friendly forces before winter begins, so that the people outside the Great Wall can have a good year.”

After speaking, the entire conference room fell into a brief silence.

  But from the excited expressions of the commanders, it can be seen that their hearts are not very peaceful.

 When Taiyuan was recovered a month ago, the 120th Division and the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region could only provide support to the 129th Division and were responsible for keeping an eye on the Japanese reinforcements around Shanxi.

 This time the Eighth Route Army sends troops to Suiyuan, the main force in the battle must be their two major bases.

As for what the deputy general staff said about supporting friendly forces, it is not difficult to understand. After the Japanese troops strengthened the establishment of the troops stationed in Mongolia, the one who faced the greatest pressure must be the Seventh and a Half Routes in the Eighth Theater.

The opponent has formed its own unique strategy for using troops a long time ago. When attacking, it often emphasizes concentrating its forces to attack the enemy's weaknesses, and uses the advantage of intelligence to surprise the enemy and launch surprise attacks.

If the attack is unsuccessful, the position will be converted to a strong attack.

 Coordinated operations with infantry, artillery, and cavalry, making full use of the advantages of the various arms at hand.

In terms of defense, he believed that if you can't attack, you can't defend. He advocated launching a counterattack before the enemy attacks to disrupt the opponent's deployment.

It is precisely based on the above-mentioned ideas that the Seven and a Half Route Army can gradually gain a foothold in the Suiyuan area, and even crush the Mongolian army in terms of IQ and tactics.

 The problem lies in the style of play.

If the Japanese were still a division, a cavalry group, or an independent mixed brigade, they could definitely lead the enemy in a circle and conduct surprise attacks from time to time to consume the effective strength of the Mongolian army.

But now Okamura Neiji has dispatched an additional division and an independent mixed brigade to the Suiyuan area, and the Kwantung Army may enter the border for support at any time.

Although the Eighth Theater Command claims to have eight divisions, the only ones with actual combat effectiveness are the 35th Army, the 6th Cavalry Army of the Central Army, and the 35th Division of the Northwest Three Horses.

 The rest of the troops are poorly equipped and trained, and there are even brigade-level units with a strength of 500 troops. Once a firefight occurs, their effectiveness is very limited, and the county brigade and district squads have stronger combat effectiveness than them.

With just 20,000 people, it is impossible to stop the greatly increased strength of the Mongolian army.

 Coupled with the fact that the enemy also sent additional land aviation and some elite agents, the Qilu and a half lost the intelligence network they had worked so hard for many years, and the Hetao area was already in danger.

 In desperation, Qibu had no choice but to ask Bald Head for help.

Logically speaking, after losing Shanxi, Preserved Fruit must keep the Suiyuan area, otherwise the whole of North China will have nothing to do with them.

Unfortunately, the battlefield in Central China was not peaceful either. The Japanese assembled the main force of the 3rd, 4th, and 6th Divisions in Yueyang, totaling 120,000 people, and they were ready to attack Changsha if they disagreed.

After weighing the pros and cons, Baldhead decided to focus on the south first and sent a telegram to Route 7 and a Half. The content of the telegram was very simple, with only eight characters: If you hold on firmly, there will be a way!

Come, come, finally I split the chapters

 (End of this chapter)