Chapter 66: Prelude to Eastern Expedition

  Foreign enemies invade, mountains and rivers are broken, the years of beacon fires burning in the sky, happy times are always so short, it's hard to get together in life, only parting is more.

  Qiuquan's special combat reconnaissance team and Qiusheng's intelligence network continuously transmitted surrounding intelligence back to the base, which was sorted by Qiusheng and Zhu Jing before being sent to Tang Qiu at regular intervals for him to assess the situation.

  As early as when the troops ended the battle at Yingzi Ridge and returned to the base for reorganization, Tang Qiuli had dispatched all of Qiuquan's troops. With Songjiang City and Sancha River as the center, they radiated outwards in a radius of several hundred kilometers, extensively collecting various intelligence. They established intelligence stations in important towns and transportation hubs, whether by arranging their own soldiers or relatives, or by buying with money. In short, an intelligence network covering the entire Northeast had to be established, and this matter was handled by Qiusheng and Qiuquan.

  As for the necessary expenses, just ask Zhang Quan to take care of it. As the saying goes, "Money can make things happen!" After a period of preparation, intelligence networks in various places were successively improved, and some important intelligence centers were specially equipped with radio stations, maintaining 24-hour continuous communication with the base's intelligence defense department. It can be said that for any major event occurring in the Northeast, within eight hours, the telegram draft could be put into Tang Qiuli's hands.

  These days, Tang Qiu has been relatively comfortable. According to the principle of graded responsibility, detailed matters no longer require his intervention, allowing him to have a lot of time to consider the next combat focus and development direction of the troops.

  Her feelings with Xiaoling deepened day by day, and they often had a "heart-to-heart" understanding. Xiaoling was a good learner, an ambitious girl who handled hospital matters in an orderly manner, and also grasped a lot of simple medical knowledge. Tang Qiulian even took out time to teach her English and Japanese. It has to be said that this girl is naturally gifted with language talent, and now she can use simple English or Japanese to have daily conversations with Tang Qiulian.

  Sometimes, Tang Qiuli would speak to Xiaoling in English, saying sweet nothings that left everyone else stunned and confused. They'd whisper to each other, wondering if their leader was a god descended from heaven, speaking some sort of divine language they'd never heard before. Even Lian Sheng and Shan Hu were baffled - did Xiaoling really understand what he was saying? Of course she did, and her face would flush with happiness as she replied in kind, leaving everyone even more mystified. Although no one knew exactly what they were saying, judging from Xiaoling's expressions, it seemed like their conversation was a bit too intimate for young ears!

  The training of the troops was even less of a concern, as the relationship between the Red Army cadres led by Li Honggang and the original Northeastern Army cadres led by Liu Tienan and Feng Jiawu was quite harmonious, with no distinction between you and me. The troops were brought together like an iron plate. Later, Tang Qiuli thought carefully about this and felt that it was reasonable. First, both sides had the same goal of eliminating the Japanese devils and recovering lost territory. Second, the Northeastern Army and the Red Army had not clashed on the battlefield, so there was no blood feud between them. This greatly relieved Tang Qiuli's worries and put his mind at ease.

  Abundant food, the warriors' bodies are well-nourished, with a healthy glow on their faces. Even at home, they wouldn't leave even if driven away with a whip after eating such good meals. Scientific, systematic and effective training has brought about a qualitative leap in the military skills of the warriors, with high morale and loud cheers from the troops!

  The whole Blood Hand Gang is like a precious sword that has been re-tempered and re-forged, its sharp edge revealed, waiting to be unsheathed and strike down the devilish enemy's head!

  Through the intelligence brought back, Tang Qiuli had a clear understanding of the situation around the base. The Japanese army led by Matsumoto, after suffering a devastating blow at Yingzi Ridge last time, retreated to Songjiang City and was busy replenishing troops and equipment. Old devil Matsumoto has been relieved of his duties and is said to be escorted back to Japan for trial in a military court, which is also thanks to Tang Qiuli.

  After the battle of Yingkou Ridge, the Japanese Kwantung Army headquarters realized that southern Manchuria was not a peaceful place and the Imperial Army's strength needed to be increased. The devils were reinforced and the original regiment expanded into a brigade with over 7,000 troops, increasing the number of armored vehicles and artillery battalions. The new brigade commander, Haru, was a senior staff officer at Kwantung Army headquarters who had been in Northeast China for many years and held the rank of major general. As soon as he took office, he spread his network everywhere to find the whereabouts of the Blood Hand Gang, saying that he wanted to avenge the Imperial Army soldiers who had died in battle.

  For these situations, Tang Qiuli smiled slightly, the devils are now like raging bulls with red eyes, it's not worth confronting them head-on, let the devils wander in the maze, go ahead, I'll stay here to conserve my energy and wait for an opportunity to bite you hard.

  In the Sanhe River area, after Tang Qiuli's last robbery, Japanese merchants went bankrupt one after another. Chinese merchants were afraid of revenge from the "ghosts" (Japanese) and also transferred their assets. The Japanese merchants couldn't loot anything, so they pushed all the blame onto the unlucky Matsumoto. Now in Sanhe River, the market is bleak, and all industries are withering away. In order to maintain this important transportation hub for goods, the Japanese had no choice but to adopt a policy of appeasement towards the Chinese. Japanese banks issued interest-free loans, reduced taxes, supported Sino-Japanese industry and commerce, and worked hard to revive the economy. This allowed the Chinese to gain quite a few benefits. Despite this, conservatively estimated, it would take at least five years for Sanhe River to recover to its original level. This was an unexpected result that Tang Qiuli had not anticipated. He secretly smiled to himself, "Just wait and see, after another year or so, I'll come back and grab a big haul again."

  The devils increased their forces in Sankeshu, not only restoring the original Kempeitai battalion but also adding a reinforced devil battalion, and forcibly implementing a population registration system within the town.

  According to these intelligence, Tang Qiuli believes that at present, it is not suitable for the troops to launch large-scale military operations and should hide and wait.

  There was a piece of intelligence from Tonghua that caught his attention, the "Extermination General Commander" of the Eastern Hebei Province, Shao Benliang, in coordination with the Japanese "Mountain Forest Mopping-up Troops" and aircraft, launched a large-scale siege against the First Route Army of the Northeast Anti-Japanese United Forces led by Yang Jingyu. It is said that they have achieved a major victory, and Yang's troops are on the verge of collapse, fleeing into the deep mountains and forests, struggling to survive from day to day. The Imperial Army has restored order in the Changbai Mountains area of Eastern Hebei Province.

  Intelligence also made a detailed introduction to the enemy situation, form and strength of the Shao Benliang troops in the Changbai Mountain area.

  After reading this intelligence, Tang Qiuli first sneered at the so-called great victory of the devils. Is it that easy to eliminate the Anti-Japanese League? Despite the difficulties and dangers, the Anti-Japanese League persisted in fighting between the White Mountains and Black Waters, continuously striking the devils.

  For General Yang Jingyu, Tang Qiuli's heart is filled with reverence. When he saw the information about this legendary general in his previous life, his throat was choked by a hot flow. He is a Chinese man of iron bones and boiling blood! He felt sorry for General Yang's sacrifice.

  Now, General Yang's troops are in a difficult situation. Why not come to a distant expedition and stab the devils in the back, first to lift the siege of the Anti-Japanese Alliance, wherever it is to eliminate the devils, secondly, can see this legendary general who has been in contact for a long time, whether his arrival will change the fate of the future. As soon as he thinks of this, there is an irrepressible impulse in his heart, and he wishes he could fly to that battlefield where cannons are firing and passions are surging immediately.

  He calmed down his excited mood and considered the problem from all angles. Since the troops were currently in a state of hidden readiness, why not take the initiative to go out and look for opportunities to fight? With the troop's training level, the soldiers' physical ability and equipment situation, and his own understanding of history, he was absolutely sure that they could achieve a surprise victory, catch the enemy off guard, and ensure the safety of the troops' return.

  Having thought of this, he had already made up his mind and ordered the communication officer to notify all levels of commanders to immediately go to the combat room for a meeting, with an important combat mission.

  He first came to the combat room, staring at the map of Manchuria on the wall in a trance. This map of Northeast China drawn by the Japanese was much more accurate than the one drawn by the National Government, and it could be seen that the little devils had long since had their hearts set on invading Northeast China. The dots and symbols on the map came alive in his mind as the White Mountains and Black Waters, the vast forests, the high mountains and great rivers. Combining this with the history he knew, everything was clear to him, which further solidified his confidence.

  For a moment, a hurried footsteps came, Tang Qiuli shook his head and smiled. The footsteps could be heard, it was Shan Hu, this impulsive guy, and there was another one behind him, that must be Bateer. These two guys have been inseparable since they took over as the deputy commanders of the direct guard team. They are like two peas in a pod, both with incredible strength, rough exterior, delicate interior, generous and open-minded, valuing relationships and loyalty, and quick-witted.

  Since the formation of the guard, they have been training the guards to be extremely miserable, saying that they are even more abnormal than the commander-in-chief. They trained in various skills such as long and short gun shooting, use of different artillery, cold weapon techniques, internal strength, martial arts exercises, etc., putting in a lot of hard work.

  No wonder, the twenty warriors of the Imperial Guard were indeed trained by them into the elite of the entire army. They would occasionally take the team out to conduct confrontation exercises with the warriors of various troops. After several rounds, only Qiuchuan's special forces could tie with the Imperial Guard, making the Imperial Guard's reputation soar and its momentum surge!

  Bartel is already fifteen years old, and for this younger brother of a different surname, Tang Qiuli has a kind of heartfelt pity, specially keeping him by his side, waiting for the opportunity to mature before putting him into a combat unit.

  After they came in, Liu Tiehan immediately followed, and another impatient one. In fact, Liu Tiehan had a strong urge in his heart, the troops were already anxious, why hadn't the commander issued combat orders yet? He also asked Tang Qiuli indirectly several times, but the commander always replied with "waiting for the right moment", which made him feel depressed after all. This was someone who couldn't stay idle, not fighting on the battlefield made his bones ache all over.

  Today, he had an important mission to complete, and as soon as he lifted his leg, he rushed towards the combat room. As soon as he entered the door, he found that there was someone even more anxious than him, Hummer, the second general of the Imperial Guard, who was already here.

  Soon, everyone arrived, and Tang Qiuli first analyzed the surrounding enemy situation. Judging from the current situation, our forces are still in an absolute weak position and cannot engage in a head-on confrontation with the devils. The victories at San Cha River and Ying Zui Ridge were due to taking advantage of their unpreparedness and underestimating us, combined with the devils' arrogance. Now, in this region, there is no possibility of annihilating a large number of enemies, so hiding and waiting for opportunities while training our troops is the best strategy.

  When they heard the commander say this, everyone's heart sank. Without a battle to fight, why did he hastily call everyone over? And what's with the important combat mission?

  Tang Qiulei saw everyone's reaction and felt very satisfied. A troop exists for battle, and this proactive state of seeking battle is the basic element for maintaining a high morale in troops, especially among officers at all levels.

  We have no possibility of annihilating the enemy in this area, so should we go out to find opportunities for battle? He said, putting his hand on the location of Changbai Mountain on the map. We will make a long-distance expedition, raiding the Changbai Mountain area, catching them off guard, and wiping out large numbers of devils. The fundamental purpose is only one, that is, to take relieving the siege of the First Route Army as the goal of this battle.

  "He continued: 'Next, let's discuss the specific action details with this battle purpose as the center. After the meeting, Chief of Staff Feng will draft a detailed battle plan!'"

  As soon as Tang Qiuli's words fell, the combat room immediately lost its calmness. First, Li Honggang was excited to be red in the face, suddenly stood up, and asked with a disbelieving expression: "Commander, is this true?" After finishing speaking, he realized his own loss of composure and hurriedly apologized.

  Tang Qiu nodded firmly at him.

  As soon as he sat down, those Red Army cadres became extremely agitated, some even had tears in their eyes, and Zhu Jing actually burst into tears on the spot.

  Tang Qiu deeply understood their feelings, the Anti-Japanese United Army and the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army were all led by the Communist Party of China. In this organization, every unit was treated equally, without distinction between close and distant relationships like other warlords. This decision had already deeply moved them.

  Actually, Li Honggang and Zhu Jing have been very uneasy in their hearts for the past few days. The intelligence from the Blood Hand Gang was not confidential to these high-ranking commanders. They had already known about the news of the First Route Army of the Anti-Japanese League being surrounded by a large number of Japanese and puppet troops, and many of them had worked and fought with the league before, having deep feelings for the troops. They wanted to lead the troops themselves, but the troops were in the hands of the commander-in-chief. They also thought about persuading the commander-in-chief to send troops, but they worried that he might become suspicious and affect their future work in this unit. After all, they would be facing a powerful enemy with superior forces, and it was a long expedition from here to the Changbai Mountains area, which was nearly a thousand miles away.

  When they were at a loss and worried, the commander made this decision. How could they not be excited? They were going to rescue their comrades!

  Liu Tien-han and Feng Ji-wu had a different feeling, they had never dealt with the Anti-Japanese League before, but they were very admiring of the Anti-Japanese League's firm anti-Japanese actions. After all, everyone was Chinese soldiers, defending their homes and country was the duty of soldiers.

  Li Honggang and Zhu Jing's performance, however, touched their hearts. They knew that these commanders from the Red Army and the Anti-Japanese Alliance were all part of the same family, and when they heard about going to rescue the Anti-Japanese Alliance, they became so excited that they even shed tears. This made Li and Zhu very surprised. In the past, when a unit was ordered to carry out a difficult and dangerous task, the commander would often push back and make excuses to avoid it in order to preserve their strength. Now, Li and Zhu were shocked by this scene, and they felt an indescribable emotion that quietly stirred their long-settled hearts.

  Soon, the plan for the Eastern Expedition was finalized. Seven days later, in the early morning, three combat brigades with 2,400 people set out fully equipped. First, one brigade dispatched a battalion as the vanguard of the main force, departing a day earlier to clear the way for the subsequent troops.

  Next, the troops began their tense preparations. With a force of over 2,000 people, ammunition and supplies were not small in number. Especially since Commander Zhang emphasized firepower density, more ammunition had to be brought. This was a long-distance campaign with no rear supply lines; every shot fired consumed some ammunition, so as much as possible should be brought.

  Tang Qiuli took time off to visit the Arsenal, before that, he asked Wang Xu to think of ways to reduce the overall weight of the 92-style infantry gun, making it easier for troops to carry. When he arrived, the technicians at the arsenal really solved the problem. The big gun that originally needed five or six people to carry separately can now be easily carried by two or three people. Tang Qiuli was very happy and shouted that he wanted to give all personnel at the Arsenal a big reward, issue bonuses, saying that they had solved a major problem for the troops.

  In addition, several technicians in the factory worked together to design a super-long ammunition chain and magazine for Shantui that could continuously fire 3,000 rounds without needing to change magazines. If it weren't for concerns about prolonged firing, the barrel wouldn't be able to withstand it, they even wanted to design equipment that could supply 5,000 rounds. They also installed an air-cooling device on Shantui's handheld heavy machine gun and made some minor modifications locally.

  The mountain tiger brought it over for a test, and was so happy that he jumped up high, saying it was better than before, more handy. This guy got excited, gave a passionate bear hug to a master on the spot, almost causing him to pass out from lack of breath, his ribs nearly broken by this pervert! From then on, whenever he saw Mountain Tiger, he kept a safe distance, not daring to let him get close. However, the two became good friends, and every time Mountain Tiger brought back new gadgets from the battlefield, he would send them over first, and then the two of them would take turns assembling and disassembling, developing several new weapons in the process.

  Tang Qiuli saw the super-large ammunition backpack on the back of Mountain Tiger, which should be loaded with at least 10,000 bullets. There was also a circle of hand grenades hanging from his body and a heavy machine gun in his hand. He looked exactly like a Transformer! At that time, he was speechless and felt a wave of depression.

  The tense and busy days passed quickly, and tomorrow was the day when the troops would set out.

  Tang Qiuli woke up early in the morning, without disturbing the little Ling who was still sleeping like a cute kitten beside him. He quietly got out of their love nest, and the entire base was quiet, it was the darkest moment before dawn. The warm breeze gently stroked his face, the birds had not yet left their nests, and there were only the footsteps of the guards patrolling on duty.

  He stood quietly in the dark night, waiting for the rise of the morning star in the east.

  Footsteps came from behind, a soft body leaned gently against him, and Xiaoling was still awake.

  This time, Xiaoling did not leave with the team. The hospital was in a tense construction phase and she couldn't leave. There was another experienced doctor leading the team, forming a small medical squad to depart with the troops. Facing Tang Qiu's departure, Xiaoling felt extremely lost.

  She's a clever girl, knowing that when her lover goes to the battlefield, she can only offer encouragement and comfort. So, regarding this time not following Tang Qiuli to go on an expedition, she showed great understanding, which indeed put Tang Qiuli's mind at ease.

  Behind the scenes, Xiaoling found Shan Hu and Bater, repeatedly reminding them that on the battlefield, they must protect the commander-in-chief at all costs. Only after these two men patted their chests to guarantee it did she slightly put her mind at ease.

  Tang Qiuli gently wrapped his arms around Xiaoling's soft waist, and Xiaoling leaned her head on his shoulder. Suddenly, a refreshing fragrance deeply penetrated Tang Qiuli's body and mind, causing him to unconsciously hold Xiaoling even tighter.

  In the eastern sky, a bright star slowly appears, the morning star rises, and a new day is about to arrive.

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