Anti-Japanese War: I have unlimited assistance

Chapter 352 Don’t take the usual path!
As for the price of the more than 300 Japanese soldiers from the Type A Division who were killed this time.

Li Yunlong did not replace his weapons and ammunition.

After all, getting information from Boss Lin requires paying the price of killing the Japanese.

Although Li Yunlong has a good relationship with Boss Lin, brothers still have to settle accounts clearly.

Boss Lin started delivering goods to the Jindongnan Brigade.

This time, the main force of the Eighth Route Army in southeastern Shanxi obtained one 1mm howitzer battalion and two 152mm mountain artillery battalions, which made the division commander, the general and other leaders all smiles.

While you were sitting at home, Li Yunlong brought a cannon to your door.

happy.

Li Yunlong was fully focused on making preparations for advancing into northwest Shanxi.

Li Yunlong's troops now are no longer the same as when the New 1st Regiment advanced to the Yellow River. They carried a few kilograms of dry food in their pockets, and crossed the river to fight the Japanese with rifles, swords and spears. In order to reach the battlefield, they marched hundreds of kilometers a week.

In addition to aircraft, the Jinzhong Military Region is now equipped with a large number of anti-aircraft guns, light and heavy machine guns, mortars, heavy artillery, and tanks, basically everything.

With such a large family and business, moving such a large amount of things is not an easy task.

So, Li Yunlong summoned Ding Wei and Kong Jie to Meng County to hold a meeting on advancing into northwest Shanxi.

Each of the three regiments left a part of its troops in the Jinzhong base, and the list has been finalized.

The new regiment headquarters.

Li Yunlong, Ding Wei, Kong Jie and Xing Zhiguo each ate two large bowls of oil-splashed spicy noodles, and then discussed the advance plan while puffing on cigarettes.

Li Yunlong pointed to the map and introduced the situation in northwest Shanxi:
"The northwest region of Shanxi stretches from the Yellow River in the west to the Tongpu Railway in the east and to the Fenli Highway in the south."

"There are a total of 38 counties in northwest Shanxi. Currently, our Eighth Route Army controls six counties: Xingxian, Linxian, Baode, Hequ, Pianguan, and Kelan."

"In the Datong area of ​​northern Shanxi lies our Yanbei guerrilla base!"

"The area around Suiyuan is our Eighth Route Army's Daqingshan base!"

"Headquarters instructed us to develop as quickly as possible after arriving in northwest Shanxi. Within two to three years, we must connect the northwest Shanxi, Yanbei, Daqingshan and Jinzhong bases into one, forming the Jinsui Anti-Japanese Base Area!"

Ding Wei and Kong Jie's eyes lit up.

Kong Jie said with anticipation, "If we can achieve this goal, we won't have to worry about recruiting soldiers. As long as we have enough weapons and ammunition, we can easily recruit hundreds of thousands of new soldiers!"

As long as the soldiers have sufficient weapons and ammunition, and after a few months of training, they can be sent to fight a few battles with the Japanese and the troops will be able to form combat effectiveness.

Ding Wei also said: "The areas around Baotou and Wuyuan in Suiyuan are rich in copper, coal, iron and other mineral resources. If we can capture them, the arsenals in southeastern Shanxi will have no shortage of ores."

Although the Huangyadong Arsenal now has some production lines, the production capacity of some production lines cannot be fully utilized.

One of the main reasons is the lack of raw materials. Copper is needed to make bullets and artillery shells, and high-quality iron ore is needed to make good iron and steel to make guns and cannons.

Although railroad tracks can be used to make gun barrels, the lifespan of gun barrels made from railroad tracks is very low.

The life of the Japanese Army's Type 12000 rifle barrel is 800 rounds of bullets, while the barrel made of railroad will be scrapped after firing rounds of bullets.

"That's right!" Li Yunlong nodded. "That's what the headquarters meant."

In the past, the Eighth Route Army was weak and it was impossible for it to take Suiyuan, but it is not impossible in the future.

Li Yunlong smiled slightly and said, "I called you two here today mainly to discuss how to advance into northwest Shanxi with our belongings, as well as the division of territory."

Kong Jie stared at the map and analyzed it carefully: "We set out from the Jinzhong base. If we want to reach the northwestern Shanxi base, we need to reach the Tongpu Highway first, and then pass through Xin County, Yuanping County, Gang County, Ningwu County, Gang County and Shenchi County. These are all the Japanese territories. I'm afraid the Japanese won't let us pass easily."

"Yes." Ding Wei nodded and said, "If the Japanese block our way, they will definitely send heavy troops to hunt us down. The main force of the 120th Division is not in northwest Shanxi, so there are no troops to support us."

Li Yunlong nodded and pretended to be sad and asked, "Do you two have any ideas?"

Kong Jie thought for a moment and said, "Old Li, I suggest we play it safe. We might as well leave the tanks, 105mm howitzers, 152mm howitzers, and trucks in southeastern Shanxi. When our strength in northwestern Shanxi grows stronger and the Tongpu Road is opened, we can move the tanks, howitzers, and trucks to northwestern Shanxi. What do you think?"

Kong Jie's tactical command style is primarily based on stability. Ding Wei nodded. "Old Kong's suggestion is sound. Once we reach northwest Shanxi, our strongest firepower will be the 75mm mountain artillery and 120mm mortars. If we win a few good battles, we'll soon have tanks and howitzers. With these weapons and ammunition, the situation in northwest Shanxi will quickly improve."

Li Yunlong nodded. If they took the small road instead of the highway, the troops could reach northwest Shanxi, and they could also carry 75mm mountain cannons and 120 mortars. However, they certainly could not carry many shells and ammunition.

李云龙嘿嘿一笑，将前两天林老板来团部，这次晋中军区赚到2个75毫米山炮营、1个105榴弹炮营、1个120迫击炮营和1个152榴弹炮营，并且可以在晋西北收货的事情，对丁伟和孔捷说了一遍。

Ding Wei and Kong Jie widened their eyes on the spot and exclaimed that Li Yunlong had made a fortune.

"In this way, we can quickly open up the situation in northwest Shanxi!" Kong Jie said excitedly. A 152mm howitzer battalion alone is enough to dominate northwest Shanxi!

The prerequisite is to form combat effectiveness first.

As for the matter of the special combat hero, Ding Wei and Kong Jie already knew about it, and the headquarters sent telegrams to all Eighth Route Army units equipped with radio stations.

After informing the entire army.

Today, Li Yunlong's popularity in the entire Eighth Route Army is unprecedentedly high. The soldiers are all learning from Li Yunlong and are full of enthusiasm.

When Kong Jie and Ding Wei first arrived, they congratulated Li Yunlong, but when Li Yunlong saw that they both came empty-handed, Captain Li scolded them and then got back to normal.

"If we don't bring tanks, trucks, and howitzers, we can safely reach northwest Shanxi. But there's a problem," Li Yunlong said. "Our transportation capacity is limited. What will the troops eat when they arrive in northwest Shanxi?"

Ding Wei and Kong Jie were both stunned and said in unison, "I haven't thought about that."

Li Yunlong said, "After we arrive in northwest Shanxi, we can rely on the people in the base area for assistance. But you all know that the people in northwest Shanxi are very poor. They don't have much to eat, and many people starve to death every year. This year's harvest is not good either. The troops are used to eating fine grains and having plenty of oil and water. After arriving in northwest Shanxi, if the food supply is not up to par, the combat effectiveness of the troops will probably be compromised."

Li Yunlong knew very well that the same was true for the army. It was easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but it was difficult to go from extravagance to frugality.

Ding Wei suggested: "Once we reach northwest Shanxi, we can first recapture a few county towns. On the one hand, we can earn some food from Boss Lin, and on the other hand, we can establish our prestige and spread the name of our Iron Triangle."

"We definitely have to fight for the county town." Li Yunlong nodded and said, "Boss Lin has already raised the price for retaking a county town to 1000 tons. In other words, if we retake a county town now, we can get 1000 tons of fine grains, or 2000 tons of coarse grains!"

"Old Li, this price is very attractive!" Kong Jie's eyes suddenly lit up.

A division has a strength of about 10000 people. Assuming that each person consumes 2 kilograms of food per day, a division consumes 20000 kilograms of food per day, or 10 tons. The soldiers of a division consume about 300 tons of food per month.

Including the consumption of military horses and mules, 1000 tons of food can supply a division for three months.

It just so happens that the main force heading to northwest Shanxi this time has more than 3 people. As long as they arrive in northwest Shanxi and recapture a county town, they can obtain three months of fine grains. If converted into coarse grains, that would be 2000 tons, a full six months of supplies.

It's simply a pleasure.

Ding Wei said, "According to Boss Lin's request, as long as we recapture a county town from the Japanese and the puppet army, we can obtain food. So we can do this. For example, after we recapture Ping'an County in northwest Shanxi, we will obtain 1000 tons of food. If the Japanese send their main force to attack us, we will retreat. After the Japanese main force leaves, we will send our main force to recapture the county town and obtain another 1000 tons of food. If we do this several times and recapture multiple counties in northwest Shanxi, will we still be short of food?"

"Haha." Li Yunlong laughed, "Old Ding, you really are a genius!"

"This plan is very feasible!" Kong Jie's eyes lit up like light bulbs. After the troops advance into northwest Shanxi, they will inevitably have to recruit a lot of soldiers. In addition to weapons and ammunition, you must have enough food to feed so many soldiers.

Li Yunlong said in a stern tone, "This time when we go to northwest Shanxi, in addition to the 75mm mountain guns and 120mm mortars, we must also bring tanks, 105mm howitzers, and 152mm howitzers!"

Ding Wei raised his eyebrows and said, "Old Li, do you want to fight all the way to northwest Shanxi?"

"You kid, this is not an ordinary way." Kong Jie was shocked: "Aren't you afraid that the Japanese will send a large number of troops to encircle and suppress us?"

Li Yunlong raised his lip and said, "We've wiped out the 108th Division. What other main Japanese forces are there on the Beitongpu Road? I've already bought some intelligence from Boss Lin. The enemy forces in these counties along the way to northwest Shanxi are relatively small, with a squadron at the least and a battalion at most. They're all garrison troops from second-tier divisions, and their combat effectiveness is quite low."

"We only need to send a part of our troops to block the main force of the Japanese invaders from Taiyuan, and ask the troops of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region to block the main force of the Japanese invaders from Datong. We can then do whatever we want on the Beitongpu Road."

Ding Wei and Kong Jie looked thoughtful at first, and then their eyes suddenly lit up.

Ding Wei's eyes were filled with anticipation: "Recapturing five county towns means 5000 tons of grain. This is a very good deal!"

"That's right." Kong Jie said excitedly, eager to get started right away. "In addition to 5000 tons of grain, we can also recruit soldiers in these counties. I'm sure we can recruit a lot of new soldiers and intellectuals."

Li Yunlong said with determination: "When the 115th Division Independent Regiment participated in the war for more than a month, it recaptured seven county towns. The force increased sharply from 7 to over 1700. This greatly boosted the morale of the anti-Japanese soldiers and civilians, and also enhanced the prestige and reputation of the Eighth Route Army. This time we will strive to break the record of the 7000th Division Independent Regiment."

(End of this chapter)