Chapter 64: Troop Reorganization
The wind whispers, the pine waves surge, the morning star rises, a splash of white appears on the eastern horizon, dawn is breaking, another new day is about to begin.
In a mountain pass, Tang Qiuli stood silently with his warriors, the morning wind blowing through his black hair, his slender figure standing tall like a pine tree, his dark eyes gazing at the eastern horizon, calm as water yet turbulent and majestic, the dawn clouds reflected in his eyes like two burning flames, his handsome, pale face frozen like a sculpture.
This is the first time that the troops have lost a warrior, just a few hours ago, their vibrant lives and agile figures were still fighting alongside their comrades, but now they lie on the cold earth, never to see the sunrise again.
There is no way to send your heroic spirit back home, green hills everywhere bury loyal bones, rest in peace, my comrades, my brothers!
Burying the sacrificed warriors, Tang Qiuli let Liu Tiehan and Feng Jiwu lead the team back to the base first. He and Shantiger took ten members quietly back to last night's battlefield.
The warm sunshine soothed his heart and dispelled the lump of melancholy that had accumulated inside, the sacrifices were already far away, but those who lived on still had to continue fighting; perhaps one day he would also be lying quietly in some place on the great land of the motherland, all his achievements left for posterity to mourn.
Thanks to each warrior having a file, on which their hometown address and the names of their relatives are recorded. We must find an opportunity to give generous compensation to the families of the martyred warriors. Now the troops do not lack money.
Standing on the site of last night's fierce battle, the erupting volcano has been extinguished, and all around is quiet, with only the white snow-covered ground, those pieces of congealed, frozen blood shocking the eyes, broken clothing, shattered guns, reminding people that this place had just experienced a fierce battle, this is where more than 2,000 Japanese bandits lost their lives.
In Tang Qiuli's telescope, the distant Sanjiao River was as calm as ever, bathed in the newly born dawn light, without any soaring smoke, without any raging gunfire, and without any mournful cries.
Seeing this, he put his mind at ease, and this was also the reason why he insisted on coming back to this place. In his heart, he was really worried that the devils would take revenge on the Chinese residents of Sanhe River after suffering a great loss at Yingkou Ridge. According to the nature of the devils, it is very likely that they will do so. Haven't you seen that during the eight years of resistance against Japan, wherever the Japanese devils went, there were tragic cases, and the history books were filled with blood.
It must be that the Kwantung Army, having suffered such a severe defeat, was powerless and unmotivated to take any action, so they shut their doors and conducted a military review, investigating those responsible, and let the devils fight among themselves for a while!
Tang Qiuli returned to the base with a small team on the second day at noon. After entering the secret passage of the base and giving the correct password, the heavy boulder that sealed the entrance slowly rose, and the team members entered in an orderly manner.
Similar mechanisms are set up at multiple locations along the main passage in and out of the base, not just this one. Tang Qiuli emphasized this point from the very beginning, to absolutely guarantee "one man guards the pass, ten thousand men cannot open it". Therefore, on the long narrow passage that only allows one person to pass through, there are not only such giant stones, but also a large amount of explosives buried underneath. In case of emergency, the explosives can be detonated, and the passage will be completely sealed off, rendering even an army of ten thousand men useless. And that's not all, after passing the first checkpoint, there are several more checkpoints waiting to be cleared, one by one.
Of course, there is another secret passage, which is much more spacious than this one. It is convenient for transporting goods in and out, not to mention the strict defense. The location of the mechanism and password for entering and exiting the secret passage are only known by a few core members.
Upon entering the base, Liu Tiehan and others who had returned earlier, such as Qiu Sheng, had been waiting at the entrance for a long time. Seeing Commander Tang safely return, everyone's faces lit up with joy. It turned out that under Wang Xu's command, the internal communication system of the base had already been fully installed. They were just waiting here after receiving a call from the first checkpoint guard on the secret passage.
Xiao Ling's smile is like a flower, wearing a crisp white shirt, neatly tucked into her military pants, her jet-black long hair scattered on her round shoulders, her bright eyes filled with unspeakable thoughts, beautifully bathed in the midday sunlight, behind her are lush green wild grass and vibrant blooming flowers.
Tang Qiuli was stunned for a moment, clearly a glimpse of surprise afterwards. In the daze, there was a feeling of time reversal. Wearing modern clothes instead of rural girl's attire, Xiaoling gave Tang Qiuli a feeling that she was a modern girl walking in the fields, ethereal and fairy-like, how could he not be infatuated and lost his soul?
Tang Qiuli looked at him with a silly goose-like expression, staring blankly at her. Xiao was more poised and natural than Little Ling, but she couldn't help it, her face flushed red as she gave him a fierce glare.
Those around him couldn't help but burst into laughter, and in fact, they all had a kind of brotherly affection for Tang Qiuli. They regarded the gentle and considerate Xiaoling as a little sister, and sincerely wished the young couple well.
Among everyone's kind laughter, Tang Qiulian came back to her senses. This girl is simply going to be the death of me! She's too seductive.
Everyone was chatting and laughing as they escorted the commander into the base, making it even more lively. Originally, there were over 600 people, but now suddenly increased by 1,700 or 1,800 people, all busy with their work. The new soldiers from the San Cha River reinforcement troops saw the base's big shots surrounding a young man who was clearly younger than everyone else, exuding an air of elegance and refinement as he walked over. They all looked at Tang Qiuli in surprise, wondering who this person was. It turned out that these new soldiers had not yet seen their highest commander.
After inquiring about the old warriors, especially after learning that the Battle of Sanhe River was the masterpiece of that young commander, he couldn't help but feel a deep sense of emotion. "People die in comparison to people, and goods are discarded in comparison to goods!" Look at us, all of us are over twenty or thirty years old, being pinched by the little devils like dough, thrown into prison, if it weren't for the commander, we would still be stuck in the devil's prison now, who knows when we would lose our lives! The commander is too young, and his fighting skills are even more formidable!
From then on, Tang Qiuli was shrouded in a mysterious aura and an undefeated legend in the hearts of these warriors.
After lunch and a short rest, the Blood Hand Gang held a core member meeting.
Tang Qiuli wanted to understand the current family situation first, but he didn't have a clear idea of how much they had.
Zhang Quan puffed on his tobacco pouch, smiling as he opened the ledger. The current assets of the Blood Hand Gang were astonishingly substantial, including gold bricks, gold bars, gold jewelry and gold sand, totaling over 15,000 taels of gold, and over 130 million silver coins, making him an absolute super-rich man.
Firearms: 1,800 Type 38 rifles, 900 muzzle-loaders, 35 Type 92 heavy machine guns, 260 Czech-style light machine guns, 50 Japanese-style light machine guns, 80 grenade launchers, 75 mortars, 20 Type 92 infantry guns, 5 field guns. Ammunition: over 2 million rounds of various types, over 50,000 rounds of various artillery shells. Fuel: 100 barrels of gasoline.
Tang Qiuli was startled, these weapons and equipment were more than enough to strengthen a division, and there were so many heavy weapons. His own troops had only 2,500 or 2,600 people at most, now it was the opposite, with fewer men but more guns.
Enough food reserves for over 5,000 people to eat for more than a year, over 30,000 sets of clothing, over 60,000 catties of salt, and as for other daily necessities such as oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, tea, pepper, and cloth, there were plenty. The majority was looted from small Japanese merchants, and a small portion was purchased at the Three-Forked River.
One small field hospital, five doctors, eighteen nurses, medical equipment and medicine are being counted.
The garment factory is under preparation, currently with 15 tailors who can meet the daily clothing needs of the troops.
The tofu workshop has been built, but there are not many raw materials of soybeans. However, it can provide fresh soy milk and tofu to the soldiers every day.
In addition, several pig houses were built to raise dozens of fat pigs for the army's supplementary food.
There are also hundreds of acres of wasteland reclaimed and crops planted. In short, except for what they cannot produce themselves, the logistics department can fully achieve self-sufficiency.
After Zhang Quan finished speaking, everyone burst out laughing. As the head of the logistics department, he was in charge of a multitude of tasks, and it was said that "the army advances on its stomach". His position was crucial, and he was able to hold everything together; if someone else were to take his place, they might not be up to the task! He had also found his own value in this role, and at over 40 years old, he was full of energy and enthusiasm every day.
Next is Wang Xu's report, a small ordnance factory with five machine tools and 28 technicians and skilled workers. There are 15 tons of high explosives, special metals and raw materials being counted. The machine tools are currently being installed, and ammunition reassembly can be carried out first. Three gasoline generators and one set of small hydroelectric generator units are also being installed. After the power generation is successful, it can supply electricity for production and living in the entire base.
After hearing this, everyone, including Tang Qiuli, was a bit stunned. They only knew that they had gained a lot this time, but they didn't expect to gain so much beyond their expectations. The others cast their eyes on Tang Qiuli, who was ruthless enough to lower the land of Sanhe River by three feet! No, it's three yards! It's worrying, worrying for Xiao Guizi, how can Xiao Guizi live?!
Tang Qiubai was very pleased, this trip was really worth it. He had to do so because he knew that in history, the Northeast Anti-Japanese United Army was surrounded by the absolute superior strength of the Japanese devils, and with the strict blockade of the Japanese devils, the weapons and ammunition, as well as supplies of the United Army were almost cut off. Before his sacrifice, the famous national hero Yang Jingyu could only eat the cotton wadding from his clothes and the roots and bark of trees. Tang Qiubai did not want his troops to face such a desperate situation, and he would take revenge on the Japanese devils in the future, they would pay with their lives!
He secretly pondered whether he had the potential to be a top-notch beard, or rather, the crème de la crème of beards! Otherwise, why would he get jealous every time he saw something belonging to that little brat?
Next, Akio focused on reporting the personnel situation. All personnel at the base had established complete personal files. The combat troops currently have 2,600 people, and the logistics personnel are 480 people, all of whom are relatively old and physically disabled, not suitable for frontline combat troops. Without obtaining the consent of the commander-in-chief, they were arranged in advance, that is to say, the number of people at this base will be nearly three thousand people.
Tang Qiuli heard what Tang Qiusheng said, and with a wave of his hand, he said: "From now on, I won't ask about such things. You're the one who's in charge of personnel matters anyway, so you can just make the decision yourself."
Qiu Sheng also mentioned another situation, that among the people rescued from prison, there were eighteen who showed unusual enthusiasm, rushing to do hard and tiring work, not caring about their treatment, and getting close to the soldiers, who were also happy to interact with them. After observing for a few days, Qiu Sheng found that they were talking to the soldiers, doing ideological work, and the topics were all about fighting against the devils and not being slaves of a lost country, which was in line with the commander's starting point, so he didn't stop them.
One of the men was named Li Honggang, and a woman was named Zhu Jing. They were both young, around 26 or 27 years old, and seemed to be their leaders. They had previously asked Qiu Sheng about the commander's attitude towards the war, the political composition of the troops, the commander's political stance, and whether there were any higher-level leaders, but Qiu Sheng had given them a vague answer.
Tang Qiuli understood that these dozen or so people were definitely party members, and it was good that the party members of this era were all good. His own troops were currently lacking in such talent, but he also understood that for now, they couldn't accept the party's command over guns. This troop had to be under his absolute control. He knew that in two years, the Red Army's Long March would begin, and at that time, the political atmosphere in the Central Soviet Area was already not quite normal. He especially hated those institutions like the Political Security Bureau, which killed their own comrades with ruthless cunning, and on the battlefield, they were all a bunch of backstabbers.
Don't you want to be suddenly suppressed by a special envoy sent by the higher-ups, using so-called organizational procedures, and die without knowing what happened? If these few members are willing to assist me, I will give them more space and power, and let them play their due role.
If these people want to set up a party committee or branch to replace their own leadership or rise above themselves, they can only be sent away. Their armed forces will eventually become ***, it's just a matter of time, but now is not the right moment.
Everyone has finished reporting, and the discussion on troop reorganization is about to begin.
The frontline troops were reorganized into three battalions, each with 800 men, and four companies under each battalion, with 200 men in each company. The main equipment consisted of light and heavy machine guns, grenade launchers, and mortars, supplemented by Type 38 rifles and shotguns, all aimed at achieving the highest firepower density.
The candidates for the battalion commanders are temporarily Tang Qiuli, Liu Tienan and Feng Jiwu. They will be officially appointed when suitable candidates are found. The company commander candidates will be produced among the soldiers. Soldiers elect platoon leaders, platoon leaders elect squad leaders, and squad leaders elect company commanders.
Qiu Quan was in charge of organizing the Special Warfare Battalion and served as its commander. The main task was to select sharpshooters and soldiers with special warfare potential from the troops, provide them with rigorous training, and be responsible for special operations and reconnaissance of enemy situations and battlefield situations.
Deputy Commander-in-Chief Tang Qiusheng was in charge of establishing the Base Intelligence Security Department and concurrently served as its minister, with members selected from the entire army, mainly responsible for intelligence and security work.
Xiao Ling was appointed as the head of the field hospital, training a team of battlefield medics who could follow the troops into battle. Xiao Ling also served as the commander-in-chief's personal secretary, responsible for taking care of his daily life.
Tang Qiulei immediately understood, this was everyone giving them a chance to be together.
Wang Xu is still in charge of the ordnance factory and equipment research institute, accelerating the development and testing of new equipment. Among the personnel rescued from San Cha River, several college students were transferred to Wang Xu's Equipment Research Institute.
The Logistics Department of the Base was upgraded to the Logistics Department, and Zhang Quan, the former Director of Logistics, served as the Commander of the Combat Troops and the Director of the Base Logistics Department, fully responsible for the logistics work of the base.
Liu Tien-han was promoted to deputy commander-in-chief, mainly in charge of combat, Feng Ji-wu served as chief of staff of the troops, selecting talents from all units and establishing a combat department staff office.
Select thirty soldiers with good military quality and strong martial arts skills, form the Commander-in-Chief's personal guard team, with Shan Hu as the captain and Bater as the deputy captain, mainly responsible for protecting the safety of the Commander-in-Chief.
Tang Qiu strongly opposed the formation of his own guard, but to no avail. All core members were unanimous in their opinion, and he had no choice but to accept it. He felt depressed, wasn't this like becoming a national treasure giant panda? Special protection! It won't be easy to sneak out and do something out of line from now on! Dozens of pairs of eyes are staring at you!
After the arrangements were made, Tang Qiuli specifically mentioned the issue of consolation for the families of the martyred soldiers. It was finally decided that each family of the martyred soldiers would be given a subsidy of 400 yuan, and this matter would be handled by Qiu Sheng and Zhang Quan.
When the troops went out for battle, Wang Xu and Zhang Quan, who stayed behind in the base, had full authority to decide on the daily affairs of the base.
The troops do not have combat missions for the time being. All personnel of each battalion should arrive as soon as possible and immediately start military skills and military quality training, especially live ammunition shooting. Don't be stingy with bullets and quickly improve the combat skills of soldiers.
After the meeting, it was already dinner time. Tang Qiuli still couldn't help but find an opportunity to pull Xiao Ling into his arms and be affectionate with her. Xiao Ling's thin summer clothes ignited a fire in his heart, but thinking of the many things on his mind, he could only suppress this flame. Xiao Ling wasn't much better off either, her body almost sticking to Tang Qiuli's as if she wanted to merge with him. Having obtained her father's permission, she let go of her reserve and was filled with longing for the beautiful future that lay ahead.
Next, the troops unfolded a fiery training session, and the entire base was filled with energy. Tang Qiuli specially observed those few members and had an initial impression of them.
That day, Tang Qiuli was in the house where he and Xiaoling lived, writing a training outline with his head down.
Hearing a knock at the door, he felt slightly surprised. He had instructed that no one was to disturb him unless it was an emergency, so who could this be?
He stopped the pen in his hand and pulled his thoughts back from the vast military field.
The knock on the door sounded again, seeming so patient and stubborn. "Come in!" he commanded loudly. The door opened, and a man and woman walked in. Tang Qiuli was slightly stunned, somewhat unexpected, it was them...
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