Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Changjin Lake, a Hundred Battles, a Hundred Victories

Chapter 274 Chen Ming mobilizes Li Yunlong

Shuoxian Command Center.

Chen Ming was working in the command post, pondering what would happen next.

"It's a pity that old Japanese devil Gangcun is so calm and collected. Even though Baotou suffered such heavy losses, we didn't see them make a move."

"But it's better not to make a move. I can continue to accumulate strength and prepare for the final battle next year."

"We can continue to bleed the Japanese soldiers in Baotou, making them weaker until they lose their strength."

Chen Ming thought to himself.

His original plan was to provoke the Japanese into action through the Battle of Baotou.

This way, he can deplete some of the Japanese forces before the major battle next year.

This is why Chen Ming went to Jining – to take command from there.

The command of Baotou was handed over to the chief of staff partly to train his abilities and give him practical experience and seniority.

Another reason was that Chen Ming was too busy to be in two places at once, as he had to stay and prevent a large-scale counterattack by the Japanese.

However, Okamura, this old Japanese soldier, was an experienced commander and could remain calm.

Despite the huge losses suffered in Baotou, they did not lose their composure and launch an attack prematurely.

This made Chen Ming think more highly of the other party.

Although Chen Ming did not expose any weaknesses in the Japanese army, he had already achieved his goal.

Without external intervention, the Japanese forces in Baotou were essentially wiped out.

This means that Chen Ming will only need to station a portion of his troops in Baotou for next year's battles.

They didn't even need to use their own troops; they just had the Daqingshan Detachment near Baotou handle the encirclement, and then sent another detachment over.

"Who should we bring over?"

Chen Ming tapped his fingers on the table, deep in thought.

The Japanese troops in Baotou were, after all, a division. Although they had suffered heavy losses, they could still muster eight or nine thousand troops if they didn't care about the cost.

Including logistics units and other auxiliary units, the number of personnel is close to ten thousand.

This is a force that cannot be ignored, and it will take a considerable number of troops to defend against it.

After development, the Daqingshan Detachment now has more than 4,000 members, an increase of more than 50% in troop strength.

However, compared to the nearly 10,000 Japanese soldiers, this number of troops was still insufficient.

Most importantly, the weapons of the Daqingshan Detachment were inferior to those of the Independent Detachment. They had almost no heavy weapons, but they were not lacking in light weapons.

The arsenal is now producing weapons in a steady stream, including pistols, rifles, 60mm mortars, 82mm mortars, and other explosive weapons.

The independent detachment already has enough of these light weapons.

Therefore, most of the weapons produced now are distributed by headquarters.

The guards of the Daqingshan Detachment often needed to coordinate operations with the Independent Detachment's troops in Suiyuan, so they received more resources when replenishing their weapons.

This is normal; after all, one has to consider the degree of closeness or distance in a relationship.

Units that frequently cooperate with independent detachments will definitely receive more weapons.

It's like the brigade commander, who used to frequently come to Chen Ming's place to freeload, and the other brother units couldn't really say anything wrong with him.

"Speaking of the brigade commander, it seems like he hasn't come to congratulate me for over a month. He didn't even come for the Battle of Baotou. Could he be plotting something?"

Chen Ming suddenly thought of the brigade commander, who hadn't visited him for some time.

It wasn't because of the busy fighting; it was already winter, and the Japanese had basically stopped making any major moves. What major moves could they possibly make?

It's unlikely that we'll make any major moves ourselves. Given Chen Ming's rank, it's impossible that he wouldn't know about any combat plans.

While it's impossible to know the specific operational plans for other strategic areas, it's possible to know the general operational plans.

Before the official documents were issued, Chen Ming was still considered part of the Fourth Division, not the Jin-Sui-Re-Cha.

This way, if the brigade commander were to make any big moves, it would be even less likely to be kept secret from Chen Ming.

Therefore, the reason of being busy with military affairs should not be valid.

"Let's find some time later to go and check it out, and find out in advance what the brigade commander is planning."

Chen Ming shook his head and said with a smile.

His camaraderie with the brigade commander was forged in blood and fire, a bond of unparalleled purity.

For the two of them, the tradition of wishing each other good fortune has become a source of joy.

In this kind of relationship, everything except one's wife can be shared.

After deciding to visit the brigade commander, Chen Ming continued to consider which unit to transfer to Baotou.

"Report, Commander Li of the Independent Regiment has arrived."

The guard outside the door came in and reported this.

The sound interrupted Chen Ming's thoughts, reminding him of Commander Li of the Independent Regiment—wasn't that Li Yunlong?

"Well, let him in."

"Yes."

Not long after, a dark-skinned man came in.

Who else could this person be but Li Yunlong?
"Report to the chief."

Upon entering, Li Yunlong immediately saluted respectfully.

This respect he showed was genuine and heartfelt.

Chen Ming had completely won him over. Li Yunlong admired a leader who could grow a small district squad into an independent detachment and continue to change things.

Everyone says that Li Yunlong is fearless, even the Heavenly King himself wouldn't dare to challenge him.

In his mind, even the brigade commander was ranked ahead of the Heavenly King.

Now, Chen Ming's status in Li Yunlong's heart is on par with that of a brigade commander.

After all, Chen Ming's experience is so legendary that anyone who knows about it will be full of admiration and emotion.

Meanwhile, Chen Ming has now become Zhao Gang's superior.

In Li Yunlong's heart, Lao Zhao was his partner. Although he had been transferred away from the Independent Regiment, he would always remember Zhao Gang.

Li Yunlong's skin was thicker than a city wall. If Chen Ming became Zhao Gang's superior, then he was Li Yunlong's superior.

In terms of equations, it means: Chen Ming = Zhao Gang's leader; Zhao Gang = Li Yunlong's partner.

Therefore, we arrive at the equation: Chen Ming = equal to Li Yunlong's leadership.

That's why Li Yunlong shamelessly visited Chen Ming's command post multiple times.

Seeing Li Yunlong salute him, Chen Ming returned the salute and then joked with a smile:
"Li Yunlong, why are you borrowing cannons again after only two weeks?"

"At this rate, my cannon will soon be yours. I might as well change my surname to Li."

The "borrowing cannons" that Chen Ming mentioned was naturally Li Yunlong borrowing cannons from Zhao Gang after Zhao Gang became the political commissar of the artillery detachment.

Li Yunlong naturally knew his limits; the artillery he borrowed was not the field guns of the artillery detachment, but the heavy mortars of the artillery detachment.

That is, a 120mm mortar.

This mortar, with its high lethality, lightweight design, and indirect fire advantage, is particularly suitable for mountain guerrilla warfare and urban combat on the domestic battlefield.

It is also very powerful in tackling tough challenges, after all, its power is undeniable.

In the absence of heavy artillery, its value lies in providing "quasi-howitzer" level support at a relatively low cost, and it is particularly suitable for eliminating Japanese bunkers and suppressing infantry groups.

However, this artillery piece was not used frequently within the independent detachment.

At medium range, the independent detachment has 107mm rocket launchers and 88mm rocket launchers.

There are field artillery units and medium field artillery units at long range.

At close range, the 60/82 mortar, a lighter type of mortar, can play a greater role.

Therefore, the 120mm mortar doesn't have many opportunities to be used in the Independent Detachment. But while the Independent Detachment doesn't use it, other units love to!
Not all troops are like Chen Ming's, possessing two field artillery battalions, one heavy artillery battalion, and a large number of rocket launchers.

For them, a 120mm mortar is already a deadly weapon, with the power of a quasi-howitzer.

In addition, it is a curved-fire weapon and weighs only 280 kilograms, making it relatively easy to move, which has won the favor of other units.

Therefore, Chen Ming frequently lent the heavy mortar battalion of the Independent Detachment to other units.

Of course, another reason is that many of the artillery pieces borrowed were students from the command department of the Fourth Military Sub-district School.

Chen Ming still holds the title of principal, and if former students come to him for help, how can he refuse to help if it is within his ability?

Anyway, it was borrowed to fight the Japanese.

Li Yunlong, relying on his relationship with Zhao Gang, shamelessly came to the scene multiple times.

This time is no exception.

"Commander, we've discovered another medium-sized Japanese stronghold."

"Even in the dead of winter, the Japanese soldiers in that stronghold were not on guard. They looted grain from two surrounding villages and killed more than sixty civilians."

"I, Li Yunlong, must avenge this grudge."

Li Yunlong spoke first.

"Alright, stop with the nonsense. Every time you come to borrow a cannon, you have a reason."

"I don't care about anything else, as long as it's used to fight the Japanese devils."

"Go ask Zhao Gang for a note, then come back to me for his signature."

Chen Ming spoke up

When Li Yunlong heard Chen Ming agree, a smile immediately appeared on his face.

Getting a note from Zhao Gang, with Chen Ming's consent, wouldn't be a problem.

"Thank you, sir! Thank you, sir! I'll kneel down before you, sir! Haha, thank you, sir!"

Li Yunlong laughed heartily and thanked him.

"Okay, get out of here."

Chen Ming was both amused and exasperated, finally understanding how the brigade commander felt.

Having a subordinate like Li Yunlong, as long as he doesn't make mistakes, is indeed something to like.

No wonder so many leaders liked Li Yunlong.

Character determines destiny. Li Yunlong, who never made mistakes, was indeed an outstanding and likable cadre.

After Li Yunlong left, Chen Ming reflected on the past.

"How about we transfer Li Yunlong to Baotou?"

"Li Yunlong has a lot of clever ideas, and the Independent Regiment has sufficient troops. Blocking Baotou shouldn't be a big problem."

"At that time, we can send two or three more guerrilla battalions over, and our troop strength will exceed that of the Japanese."

"The Japanese have lost the powerful breakthrough capability of their armored forces, making it very difficult for them to break through the defenses."

Chen Ming thought to himself.

Li Yunlong's appearance gave him a lot to think about.

Who said only troops from the Fourth Military Sub-district could be transferred to Baotou?
Li Yunlong's Independent Regiment would be perfect.

Although the Independent Regiment is called a regiment, it has nearly five thousand members.

Originally, there should have been more than one independent regiment, but everyone knows Li Yunlong's personality.

Big mistakes are made occasionally, but small mistakes are constantly occurring.

After the new political commissar of the Independent Regiment arrived, Li Yunlong had a conflict with him for a period of time.

In addition, he made another mistake and was removed from his position as group leader again.

Therefore, the current strength of the Independent Regiment is only about five thousand people.

The surplus troops were selected to form core regiments and sent out to develop.

Otherwise, Li Yunlong's Independent Regiment would have had six or seven thousand men last year, and now it's impossible for it to have only five thousand left.

After all, with the independent detachment acting as a shield during this period, the independent regiment did not encounter any major battles in the Jin-Sui region.

In Chen Ming's view, it would be very appropriate to transfer Li Yunlong's Independent Regiment to Baotou.

After the Independent Regiment is transferred, some troops can be redeployed to fill the Independent Regiment's defense zone.

This approach avoids leaving a region vulnerable to attack, thus affecting the overall strategic landscape, while also allowing the independent regiment to play a greater role.

However, this matter still needs to be discussed with the brigade commander, since the Independent Regiment and Li Yunlong are under the brigade commander's jurisdiction, not under Chen Ming's command.

"It seems I really need to go see the brigade commander."

After making up his mind, Chen Ming's thoughts suddenly became clear.

Thinking that Li Yunlong was going to attack the stronghold, Chen Ming called out towards the door again:
"Dabiao."

"arrive."

Hearing Chen Ming call him, Da Biao, who was outside the door, immediately pushed the door open and entered.

"Take a slip of paper, go to the arsenal, and ask Comrade Jia to approve twenty rocket launchers."

"The arsenal didn't develop rocket launchers. This time, Li Yunlong is going to attack a stronghold, so it's a good opportunity for him to take them to the battlefield for a real test."

"We'll see what needs improvement then, and make those improvements."

Chen Ming spoke up.

After a period of research, the arsenal has achieved the miniaturization of rocket engines.

This means that the independent detachment can be equipped with individual rocket launchers, which can be used to attack Japanese fortifications and armored vehicles.

The effectiveness of a man-portable rocket launcher is sometimes no less than that of a 107mm rocket launcher.

After all, the two are applicable to different scenarios; one is for individual use, and the other is for mass strikes.

The two are complementary; neither is stronger than the other.

However, the technology of the individual rocket launcher is much more advanced than that of the 107mm rocket.

Only now has the arsenal announced the good news of successful research and development.

Several factors contributed to this, one of which was that Jia's classmates were skilled in this area.

Secondly, Chen Ming's investment, regardless of cost, allowed the arsenal to have more resources and manpower to invest in research and development.

Third, with the 107mm rocket launcher as a reference, the difficulty of developing individual rocket launchers is naturally much lower.

Fourth, the bonus from Chen Ming's badge set increased the research and development speed of the arsenal several times over, accelerating its efficiency.

This is what enabled Chen Ming to develop the individual rocket launcher during this period.

These conditions are all indispensable; the absence of any one of them will delay the development of the rocket launcher.

Now that the rocket launcher has been successfully developed, it's time to put it to the test in real combat.

Taking advantage of Li Yunlong's plan to attack a medium-sized stronghold, we can test it out on the battlefield.

A direct-fire rocket launcher poses a much greater threat to a stronghold than a mortar with indirect fire!
After receiving Chen Ming's order, Da Biao immediately sent someone to the arsenal to retrieve twenty rockets and their accompanying ammunition.

Looking at the rocket launcher in front of him, Chen Ming couldn't help but feel a little sentimental.

It has been almost four years since I returned in 1939.

He felt a great sense of accomplishment that the arsenal's technology had developed to its current level in the past four years.

"Just wait, in the near future, we will have heavy artillery, tanks, airplanes, and even warships."

Chen Ming thought to himself.

P.S.: The doctor said there was nothing wrong and that I was just scaring myself.
(End of this chapter)