Southern guerrilla warfare: I led the Red Seventh Army Corps to amassed a million troops.

It's not for any other reason than the incident last time when Special Commissioner Zhang was hit by two bullets during the breakout.

He was implicated due to his failure to protect others and almost went to jail.

Later, because he knew some traditional Chinese medicine, he was assigned to work as a doctor at a "red" hospital, where he happened to treat this bigwig.

Yu Qiubai spoke up for him, which gave him the opportunity to return to the front lines.

Based on this relationship alone, how could he possibly lay a hand on them?

Moreover, Yu Qiubai's seniority speaks for itself. He enjoys a very high reputation within the Party, is always kind to others, never participates in factional struggles, and is the kind of good-natured person that everyone would call "Comrade Qiubai."

His reputation is excellent, with virtually no blemishes.

Moreover, his health was not good.

If I get so angry that I hurt myself, even my teacher might slap me.

The person who sent Comrade Qiu Bai to eastern Fujian was extremely ruthless.

This is simply the most sophisticated form of extortion in the history of political maneuvering.

I'll have to be more careful what I say from now on!

Zhou Zeyuan sighed inwardly. He stood up and said neither humbly nor arrogantly, "I have never respected any authority. I only respect the truth."

Yu Qiubai nodded: "Okay, that's what I'll do too. I hope Comrade Zeyuan will give me more guidance in the future."

Then Comrade Qiu Bai began to tell him about some things that happened after the Northern Expeditionary Anti-Japanese Vanguard left Ruijin.

He mysteriously revealed to me that the Central Red Army might be about to switch to fighting on the outer lines.

Zhou Zeyuan simply stated nonchalantly that he had already anticipated the central government's decision before setting off.

What made him feel relieved was that his teacher was in good health and was currently busy expanding his influence.

At this point, Yu Qiubai sighed deeply. Many children, whose height was not even as tall as a gun, responded to the call and enlisted in the army.

At its peak, the Central Soviet Area had a population of 450 million. Even after the destruction caused by the Kuomintang, there were still hundreds of thousands of able-bodied young adults of working age.

Unfortunately, after each previous expansion, the source of soldiers has long been exhausted.

In model Red Army counties like Xingguo and Yudu, each county supplied tens of thousands of troops, basically men, women, and children all joined the fight.

So much so that when the Red Army later withdrew from the Soviet area, the crowds who came to see them off were all elderly men and women.

During this period, the Central Red Army actually had a considerable number of soldiers, more than 8, but only more than 3 guns.

Adding more new recruits would have a negligible impact on combat effectiveness.

But the central government's logic is actually the same as Zhou Zeyuan's: the number of guns hasn't increased, but the number of people has. Although it doesn't increase combat power much, it does increase health.

When the future is uncertain, doing so is the wisest choice.

At this point, Zhou Zeyuan was actually quite regretful. If the Central Red Army could spare some of his elite veterans, he could have easily defeated the Kuomintang army on the other side.

It's just an army of 10.

I have 4 fully equipped troops, which sounds like a lot!

If they were all elite Red Army soldiers with similar equipment, it would be incredibly easy for one to fight two or three opponents at once.

"Wait a minute, Zeyuan, what was your last sentence?" Yu Qiubai seemed to have heard something unbelievable and suddenly sat up from the recliner.

"Just now? I said we could take on three of them by ourselves." Zhou Zeyuan looked completely bewildered, showing no sign of feigning ignorance.

"No, what about the previous sentence!" Yu Qiubai was now genuinely anxious.

He thought he had just heard something important, but Zhou Zeyuan's tone was too frivolous, which he didn't like, so he didn't pay much attention.

Zhou Zeyuan frowned and pondered for a while, then murmured, "The previous sentence? Oh, 4 troops."

"I'm not bragging, we really do have that many troops! But this number comes from the advance detachment heading north to resist Japan, plus local armed forces."

Yu Qiubai rubbed his forehead. He had known how many troops were in the Mindong Soviet Area before he came.

There were already 3 men before, and after winning a battle, the number increased to 4. What's so strange about that?

"Not that sentence, the one in the middle. You seemed to have mentioned something about guns?"

Zhou Zeyuan suddenly realized, "Oh, what you mean! I was just saying that we have more guns and more people, and our equipment is similar to that of the Kuomintang. If they are all elite Red Army soldiers, we are fully capable of fighting two or even three against one."

"So many guns! How many exactly? How come they're about the same as the Kuomintang's equipment?" Yu Qiubai was genuinely shocked. This term was completely unfamiliar to him. Since the establishment of the Red Army, it had been lagging behind the Kuomintang in terms of equipment for a long time.

"Not many, 28000. The armament rate of the entire army is less than 70%. The main thing is that we also have more than 100 mortars and more than 500 light and heavy machine guns, which are the important pillars of our firepower."

Yu Qiubai's expression was extremely complex, a mixture of joy and anger: "Isn't that enough? Do you know how many guns our Central Red Army only has in total?"

Zhou Zeyuan shook his head: "I really don't know. After all, this is a top secret of the Central Committee, how would I know?"

"There are only a little over 30,000 guns in total! The equipment rate is barely 40%!" Yu Qiubai slapped his thigh hard.

"Your legion is more extravagant than our entire army group. I was wondering why I got this position. Turns out you've got the ability to challenge us."

Zhou Zeyuan quickly waved his hand: "Look at what you're saying, how could I have the guts to challenge you? My teacher often taught me that we must maintain the unity of the Party leadership, and that we should maintain a balance of struggle without breaking with our comrades, and not resort to force casually."

Yu Qiubai wasn't buying it at all, and looked at him with a smile: "Hmm, that makes a lot of sense. But could you interpret it this way: if your teacher didn't say that to you, you'd be prepared to resort to violence?"

Zhou Zeyuan felt his head was spinning. He hadn't really thought these people were that impressive when he used to run errands for them.

In a real fight, these big shots were seriously underestimated.

Thank goodness, I excel in both military and political affairs.

Those who can out-argue me can't beat me; those who can beat me can't out-argue me.

He adopted a humble and receptive expression: "You're absolutely right. I'm still young, after all, and my political awareness needs improvement. You see, that's why the Central Committee sent you here. I will definitely learn from you in the future."

Yu Qiubai leaned back in his chair and waved his hand: "Comrade Zeyuan, don't be in a hurry. A person's political awareness cannot be achieved overnight. Let's talk about work-related issues instead."

"Tell me honestly, how much resources do we have in the Fujian-Zhejiang Soviet Area, plus your Northern Expeditionary Anti-Japanese Vanguard? Don't try to fool me. You know I don't understand military affairs."

Zhou Zeyuan muttered to himself: "You don't understand military affairs, yet you ask? This is the first time I've ever seen someone say something so confidently."

He patiently counted on his fingers, "Actually, the core is six divisions. Each division has three regiments, which basically ensures that they are fully equipped and manned."

"A supplementary regiment has been added recently, bringing the total number of men in the division to seven thousand. We are confident of defeating an elite Kuomintang division; if it is a mixed force, we can easily take on two."