Film and Television World Life Record

It's not that they don't want to purchase more weapons and ammunition; Southeast Asia simply has as much as it can currently muster.

Li Mu placed another batch of arms orders before stopping.

Steel, explosives, gasoline, medicine… he also purchased a large quantity. Just then, a batch of steam turbine generator sets he had ordered arrived; with the development of Nanyang, the existing thermal power plants were no longer sufficient. He had recently ordered another batch of steam turbine generator sets, planning to build several more thermal power plants.

After purchasing so many supplies, there is still about 25,000 cubic meters of space left.

After thinking it over, Li Mu purchased another 18,000 tons of rice and 2,000 tons of sugar before hurriedly returning to China.

Just then, the 386th Brigade had already received its equipment and was preparing to change into it. After a few days of familiarization, they would officially set off to meet up with the security forces in the central Henan region and head to the front lines together.

Moreover, perhaps sensing Li Mu's generosity and magnanimity, news came from the north that the 386th Brigade was only the main force. In addition, guerrillas from four anti-Japanese base areas—Lunan, Yudong, Yinan, and Wanbei—would also rush to the front lines to join the battle.

The combined number of these guerrillas was no less than that of the 386th Brigade. Because their firepower was too poor, they might not be able to fight them head-on. They were experts at using guerrilla tactics to harass Japan's march and attack Japan's supplies and logistics.

Li Mu was naturally very pleased.

He wasn't a stingy person; he had already planned to send another batch of gifts, so he immediately mobilized a batch of weapons and supplies.

Some time ago, he purchased a total of 40,000 Mauser 98k rifles for the militia reserve, but they have not been distributed. They are only used for militia assembly training, and are collected after use.

A few days ago, Li Mu allocated 12,000 rounds, leaving 28,000 rounds. After thinking about it, he rounded it up to a whole number and allocated another 10,000 rounds, and also allocated 2 million bullets.

This time, a considerable amount of new weapons were purchased. After a moment's consideration, Li Mu allocated fifty heavy machine guns, three hundred light machine guns, fifty mortars, eight thousand rounds of ammunition, and twenty machine guns.

In addition, five hundred Browning pistols and three hundred thousand rounds of pistol ammunition were prepared.

These weapons can be distributed by the North.

In terms of military supplies, Li Mu prepared fifty tons of steel, thirty tons of explosives, one thousand barrels of gasoline, ten radios, and a batch of medicines.

There is also a 1000-kilowatt steam turbine generator set, which generates 1000 kilowatt-hours per hour and 24,000 kilowatt-hours per day. Northern Shaanxi is not short of coal, but it lacks the necessary power generation equipment. There are only a few very small power generation units in the north, which still run on oil and are very precious.

As for steam turbine generator sets, these are large pieces of equipment used in building thermal power plants. Not only are they expensive, but there are also no channels to purchase them. It is difficult to buy them from overseas, and even if you do buy them, there are no channels to transport them in.

Sending this thing over there will be extremely useful to the north. At the very least, they won't have to worry about electricity anymore, and various small factories won't have to worry about power either.

I heard that civilian supplies are also quite tight over there, and it's hard to say whether the soldiers can even get enough to eat, let alone maintain their nutrition.

After thinking for a moment, Li Mu allocated another fifty tons of white sugar and fifty tons of dried fish; thirty tons of various flavored non-staple foods and compressed biscuits that the factory had just produced were also allocated, along with a large batch of newly produced canned goods.

Given the other party's level of mechanization and relatively weak long-distance transportation capacity, Li Mu plans to send them another fifty light trucks and ten heavy trucks. There's no need to send them separately; leaving sixty trucks behind when delivering the supplies will suffice.

……

On the other side, Li Yunlong, the commander of the New First Regiment, was all smiles as he looked at the boxes and boxes of weapons piled up like small mountains.

He opened a box and looked inside. It was a genuine German Mauser 98k rifle. He picked one up, aimed it, and exclaimed, "No wonder it's a genuine German product!"

He held the gun in his hand and played with it for a while, then opened another box. It was filled with bright yellow bullets, almost blinding him.

He touched it with obvious delight, then opened another box and exclaimed, "Original imported Czech-made light machine gun..."

He opened the surrounding boxes and counted the number, his eyes shining even brighter: "So many... Apart from engineers and cavalry, this number is enough for every infantry squad to be issued one. This firepower is probably only about the same for the German-equipped divisions that the government treasures."

Another box of a different style was opened next to the aisle, and my eyes lit up even more.

"M2 heavy machine gun. I heard the brigade headquarters has a few of these models. They used to be treasured and kept hidden away. I never thought I, Old Li, would be rich today."

Then, he walked to another pile of boxes, opened it, and grinned from ear to ear.

"I'd only ever heard of the German-made Grw 34 medium mortar before, and I heard that not many were even in service in China. I never thought I'd have one today, enough to form a mortar company."

He then opened the surrounding boxes and saw that they were full of mortar shells.

At this moment, Zhang Dabiao led a group of soldiers in carrying several large boxes.

Li Yunlong asked curiously, "What kind of weapon is in such a big box?"

Zhang Dabiao said, "Regimental Commander, I heard from the brigade headquarters that this is a machine gun. I heard that it can not only shoot down tanks and armored vehicles, but also airplanes."

Li Yunlong stepped forward, opened the box, and looked at the machine gun with its metallic sheen, touching it with obvious affection.

He couldn't help but laugh: "Our new regiment is really rich this time, we've struck it rich!"

Now, not two years later, the New First Regiment has amassed a considerable fortune through captured weapons. Both the New First Regiment and the Independent Regiment are now quite outdated in terms of weaponry; not even one rifle is provided to every soldier.

Suddenly, they were transformed from a hodgepodge of foreign weapons into a German-equipped division comparable to the elite elite forces of the Kuomintang. It was impossible not to be happy.

Zhang Dabiao also grinned from ear to ear; he had never seen such sophisticated equipment and firepower before.

Li Yunlong stayed in the warehouse for a long time before reluctantly coming out. He then asked Zhang Dabiao to lead his men to distribute the weapons and couldn't wait to go to the nearby Independent Regiment to find Kong Jie.

The brigade headquarters sent so many weapons at once. This was the first time Li Yunlong had ever been so wealthy and extravagant. He felt uncomfortable if he didn't show off a little.

Arriving at the Independent Regiment with his guards, Li Yunlong saw Kong Jie leading men to distribute weapons to the soldiers, and he swallowed all the words he wanted to say.

After a long pause, he finally said, "Old Kong, you received it too?"

Kong Jie laughed and said, "Old Li, is this the first time you've received such good weapons and you wanted to show off? You didn't expect I had them too, did you?"

"Let me tell you, it's not just our two regiments, the entire brigade is doing it, everyone's changed into new uniforms."

Li Yunlong was a little dumbfounded: "The brigade headquarters is too extravagant."

Kong Jie said, "I heard that someone invited us to go fight the Japanese. All these weapons are given away for free, and they will take care of all the ammunition, food, and logistical supplies during the battle."

Li Yunlong was a little shocked. After a long pause, he said, "Old Kong, which landlord is this? He's so rich! When have we ever fought such a wealthy battle?"

Kong Jie laughed and said, "Not only that, I heard that they also sent a large batch of weapons and ammunition, as well as supplies."

"It is said that there are hundreds of Browning pistols, and we will be able to be equipped with them in the future. They also gave us sixty trucks and a batch of radios... It is also said that they gave us a power plant."

"There's also food, and even more is being sent. They say there are fifty tons of white sugar, fifty tons of dried fish..."

Li Yunlong's eyes lit up as he listened.

"Fifty tons, that's a hundred thousand catties... This landlord is too generous. I, Old Li, am determined to take down these Japanese devils. If they want us to go somewhere, just give the word, and let those little devils see how powerful I, Old Li, am."

Kong Jie burst into laughter.

"Old Li is right. We've put such good equipment to use. Let the Japanese devils see how powerful we are."

The two chatted for a while longer. After leaving the Independent Regiment, Li Yunlong turned around and went back to the brigade headquarters. Since so many good things had been sent over, he didn't want to take them back; otherwise, he would feel uncomfortable.

Chapter 439 Oath-taking Ceremony and Drill

A few days later, under Li Mu's leadership, more than 10,000 people formally swore an oath and marched to central Henan to join forces with the 386th Brigade to form an anti-Japanese united army.

This includes two mountain artillery battalions, one cavalry battalion, one heavy artillery battalion, and one armored battalion…

With so many troops transferred away, Nanyang became much more vulnerable. Li Mu activated the pre-arranged plan, directly converting an equal number of militia reserves into regular members.

Although the training volume of the militia reserve cannot keep up with that of the regular army, and the overall military strength has declined, they have been trained and, with proper training for a few months, can quickly form combat capability.

On the other hand, after several months of research, based on the approximate process provided by Li Mu, the mass production of penicillin was finally completed.

Two days later, Li Mu returned to Singapore with a batch of finished products.

These penicillins were handed over to the Far East Trading Company and shipped to the United States for filling and packaging.

Li Mu ordered a large quantity of equipment and machinery needed for the production process, totaling more than three million US dollars.

However, it will take about a month for the goods to arrive.

He wasn't in a hurry. Although penicillin was in mass production, it would take time to promote its use, which could be several months or even half a year.

Unfortunately, these days penicillin is really just a laboratory product; very few people know about it, and its effectiveness is unknown. It needs time to prove its effectiveness before it can open up the market.

Li Mu also purchased 50,000 barrels of gasoline, 15,000 tons of wheat, 10,000 tons of rice, 5,000 tons of soybeans, 3,000 tons of white sugar, and 2,000 tons of dried fish.

Several thousand tons of steel and gunpowder raw materials were also purchased.

After finishing these tasks, Li Mu thought about the training of 100,000 militia reservists and ordered another 100,000 Mauser 98k rifles.

The situation will become increasingly severe, and the training of militia reserves must be strengthened so that, when needed, they can become qualified regular soldiers with only a little training.

Li Mu placed another order for eighty Czech-made LT-38 light tanks.

Li Mu also placed an order for fifty Bofors M1930 75mm mountain guns, with a maximum range of 9.15 kilometers.

Li Mu also placed an order for 3,000 Czech-made light machine guns and 500 M2 heavy machine guns.

After finishing matters here and returning to Nanyang, all sorts of intelligence and information were transmitted through the Military Intelligence Division.

At dawn on the 30th, the main force of the Doi-Yuan Division crossed the Yellow River south of Puyang.

On June 1, the Japanese cavalry raided near Neihuang and Yejigang and destroyed the Longhai Railway.

On the second day, the main force of the Doiyu Division split into several routes and headed south. The main force reached the Neihuang, Yejigang, and Chuzhuangzhai areas and joined up with the vanguard.

On the afternoon of the 3rd, the main force of the Doiyu Division began its attack on Neihuangji and Neihuang Railway Station in Minquan County. The 195th Division was defending Neihuangji, and the 631st Regiment of the 106th Division was defending Neihuang Railway Station.

The 195th Division had just been reorganized from local troops in Henan Province, and its officers were not yet fully staffed. It had only arrived in Neihuang from Gongxian a few days ago, and its fortifications were not even finished. The 106th Division was reorganized from the remnants of Shi Yousan's troops, and its combat effectiveness was even worse.

Guided by hot air balloons, the Japanese launched artillery bombardment, and the Army Air Force also began bombing. Under the overwhelming air and ground firepower, the 195th Division collapsed in just one wave of attacks. Subsequently, the 631st Regiment of the 106th Division, which was guarding Neihuang Station, also retreated due to being attacked from both sides. The Japanese easily captured Neihuang, Mazhuangzhai, Renheji, and other places...

On the fourth day, Xue Laohu led the First War Zone in fierce battles with the 14th Division in places such as Yifeng.

Since most of the troops in Xue Laohu's hands were troops that had been withdrawn and rested after the Battle of Shanghai and the Battle of Nanjing, there were many new recruits and their combat effectiveness was not strong.

Furthermore, the Doihara Division was a mechanized division with powerful artillery firepower and extremely high mobility. It could fight and retreat at will. Faced with the cunning Doihara Division, Xue Laohu was quite passive.

In addition, the terrain of the eastern Henan plain is very flat, making it an ideal stage for mechanized troops. Although Xue Laohu was on the offensive, he could only face the Japanese planes, heavy artillery and tanks with his own flesh and blood, resulting in huge casualties.

The only thing that made him somewhat relieved was that the government still valued him. They didn't want to rely on ground heavy firepower anymore, and after several requests for air support, the government actually dispatched ten fighter jets to cooperate with the army in combat.