Chapter 278 Selecting a landing point

After the interrogation, Qian Tiandun asked someone to send the summary of the compiled results back to the Yong'an Port headquarters via radio. Although not much information was obtained, part of South Vietnam's military situation could still be deduced from the limited information. For example, from

From the scale of South Vietnam's military food transportation, it can be inferred that the South Vietnamese army's current troop strength deployed in the area north of Zhengjiang will be about 30,000 to 40,000, far from the 780,000 or 80,000 that North Vietnam thought. There is no overwhelming strength advantage.

However, judging from the opponent's continuous replenishment of troops to the war zone, there may be tens of thousands of troops in the area south of the Zhengjiang River, but they have not yet been deployed to the front battlefield at once.

Qian Tiandun and others speculated that the South Vietnamese Army did not invest all its troops in the war zone and still used refueling tactics even though it had gained an advantage in the battle. The fundamental reason was probably due to insufficient supply capacity, which was a last resort.

According to the information given by the prisoners, Donghai, located fifty miles south of Zhengjiang, is currently the rear base camp of the South Vietnamese Northern Expedition. Food, grass, soldiers, and materials are all concentrated in Donghai and then transported north. However, starting from Donghai, you have to cross Hengshan and

Fight for the river, and then arrive at the front theater. This supply line that is more than a hundred miles long has mountains, water, and swamps, and the traffic conditions are very bad. With South Vietnam’s organizational and transportation capabilities, it is estimated that the existing front-line army is already full of supplies.

The capability is at its limit. If more troops are deployed on the front line, the South Vietnamese Army may collapse due to supply problems.

"This is the disadvantage of not having shipping capabilities!" Sun Changmi pointed out the biggest problem of the South Vietnamese army: "If they could have a fleet like ours, North Vietnam's defense line would have been breached long ago."

"This is probably the reason why the Annan Civil War has been going on for decades, but in the end we still have to maintain the dividing line between mountains and rivers." Qian Tiandun stared at the map and added: "Look, whether it is from north to south or south to north

, any party that crosses this dividing line will face a supply problem. If this problem cannot be solved, it will not be able to continue the fight if it has the upper hand."

"Is it possible to think that even if North Vietnam's mountain defense line collapses, the South Vietnamese army will not be able to maintain an overly long supply line, and will eventually stop the Northern Expedition offensive." Wang Tom put forward a new view. Before that,

The general view of the military and police department is that once the North Vietnamese defense line is broken, the flat terrain in the north is likely to be pushed straight by South Vietnam towards Huanglong. However, based on the situation obtained from the reconnaissance, they want to push it all the way to Thang Long Province.

It doesn't seem that simple.

"It's hard to say. If the South Vietnamese army can find a way to collect food on the spot after it attacks, North Vietnam may really be unable to resist. But if North Vietnam clears the country in advance and does not give the opponent a chance to collect food and grass on the spot, then the South Vietnamese army will indeed

It is very likely that we will be held back by supply problems." Qian Tiandun said thoughtfully: "But we cannot take this risk. Regardless of whether the South Vietnamese army has the ability to directly overthrow the North Vietnamese regime, as long as the North Vietnamese side is defeated, the result will definitely not be consistent.

Our interests, so this battle must still be fought."

"I think we can look at the current situation from another angle." Xie Chun also joined the discussion: "Whether South Vietnam or North Vietnam, their shipping capabilities are very poor. In fact, we only need to control the sea power to basically control them.

They are on the verge of civil war."

"After all, you just want to expand the scale of the Black Tu Port Shipyard, right?" Sun Changmi immediately pointed out Xie Chun's real purpose: "The executive committee must agree with this matter in principle, but I'm afraid it can't be given.

Black Earth Port has too much practical help, because the shipyard in Victory Port also has a big expansion plan in the first half of the year, and the executive committee can only give priority to the needs of the base camp."

"Then what should we do in Heitu Port? We can't just stop at building a few fishing boats, right?" Xie Chun obviously couldn't accept the news.

"My personal suggestion is..." Sun Changmi pondered: "You can think of a solution from Lianzhou Prefecture. There must be many shipwrights in the coastal cities of Yong'an, Qinzhou, and Lianzhou over there, and you can target them

Introduced sexually.”

Xie Chun frowned and did not continue to argue with Sun Changmi on this issue. Since Heitu Port gained hematopoiesis capabilities, the base camp's support for Heitu Port is not as strong as before, but it has given Heitu Port independent authority.

It is indeed very big. Not only can it independently introduce immigrants, but it also has the right to trade with North Vietnam and even the Guangdong and Guangxi regions. Even the military power that is most valued by the Executive Committee and the Military and Police Department has opened a back door to Black Earth Port, allowing local militia groups to organize themselves.

training. The main purpose of the base camp in granting these autonomy to Black Earth Port is to hope that Black Earth Port can be self-reliant and solve some basic development needs on its own - of course, as long as the Executive Committee blocks the supply of industrial products, especially military supplies, it will

Don't be afraid that Black Earth Port can turn the world upside down.

"There is no need to rush when it comes to shipbuilding. Let's think about the direction of tomorrow's reconnaissance." Wang Tom said something fair and brought the topic back to business: "Based on the situation of our reconnaissance today, Zhengjiang

Between the south and Dong Hoi, there are at least tens of thousands of South Vietnamese troops. I think if we continue southward, we may be discovered by the South Vietnamese troops."

Qian Tiandun pointed at the map and said: "Even if we want to launch a raid, we will use the Zhengjiang line as the main battlefield. The purpose of the operation is to destroy the opponent's supply line. I think the area north of Zhengjiang should be the main reconnaissance target.

After all, if we want to open up a second battlefield, the distance of troop projection through sea transportation should not be too long."

Early the next morning, the fleet packed up and set sail, sailing slowly north along the coastline. From the coast where they camped last night to the battle zone, there was only about ten nautical miles.

In order to cover their tracks, after traveling for a period of time, the fleet turned to the open sea and kept a distance of four to five nautical miles from the coastline to avoid being discovered by the South Vietnamese army on land.

About ten miles away from the South Vietnamese frontline military camp marked by the advance team, observers on both ships noticed through telescopes that small-scale military camps began to appear on the coast. These camps continued to extend to the north, and became denser the further north they went.

The bigger it is.

"Pay attention to the mountain pass in the northwest. It was the first line of defense that the North Vietnamese Army broke through at the beginning of the month." Qian Tiandun held a telescope in one hand and a walkie-talkie in the other. While observing, he talked with Wang Tom and others on the "Speed"

communicate.

The mountain pass Qian Tiandun mentioned is located about six or seven miles south of the mountain defense line. Another mountain ridge almost parallel to the mountain defense line extends from the inland eastward to the seaside. However, there is a road more than one mile in the middle of this mountain ridge.

The wide gap is far less dangerous than the current defense line. It's no wonder that the North Vietnamese army retreated here and didn't even hold on for ten days before the defense line was breached. Now there are a large number of South Vietnamese troops stationed on both sides of the mountain pass.

"This level is only a few hundred meters away from the seaside. I think you can use your brain here." Wang Tom replied on the walkie-talkie.

"I'm afraid it will be difficult." Qian Tiandun was not very optimistic about this: "Our militia and the North Vietnamese trained troops only have more than a thousand actual combatants. More than a thousand people have to maintain a 700-800-meter-wide

The battle front is too difficult. We have no chance to slowly dig trenches and build fortifications there. As soon as we land, we will face an attack from 30,000 to 40,000 troops from the north and south. This is really too risky."

"Then let's keep looking. I remember there is another candidate location in the north." After hearing this, Wang Tom also felt that what Qian Tiandun said was reasonable, so he did not insist on his opinion anymore.

The fleet continued to travel north and soon saw the candidate site that Wang Tom mentioned. This is a triangular sandbar near the sea surrounded by two hills with an altitude of more than 100 meters. The sandbar only leads to the inland.

The entrance is to the west, and west of this pass about 200 meters wide is where the main camp of the South Vietnamese Army is located. The distance from the seaside to this narrow pass is about 500 to 600 meters, and there are not many obstacles on the ground.

, if you land from here, it will indeed be easy to control the western pass. In terms of geographical structure, this place is similar to the Yong'an Port built by the Military and Police Department in the rear. They are both surrounded by hills and mountains.

It is close to the sea and has beaches, and there are natural gateways for building fortifications.

"This place is great!" Qian Tiandun exclaimed after seeing the actual terrain here from a distance on the boat: "With such a terrain, the South Vietnamese Army can only use human lives to feed bullets!"

"If we start a fight with the South Vietnamese Army here, I'm afraid they won't hide the musketeers anymore." Wang Tom also agreed with Qian Tiandun's point of view.

In the current mountainous offensive, the South Vietnamese Army has not put its precious firearms troops into the battlefield, because the offensive and defensive battles in the mountainous positions are indeed not suitable for the musketeers to exert their combat effectiveness. But if the battlefield is changed to a flat place, the South Vietnamese Army will not have

There is no reason not to use the sharpest weapon in their hands.

Two or three miles further north from here is the mountain defense line built by the North Vietnamese Army. After inspecting this area from the sea, the reconnaissance team did not rush back to Yong'an Port, but chose to sail eastward and circled to the outer sea.

They stopped behind the Hengyue Island - Wang Tom and others planned to wait until dark before sneaking ashore for further reconnaissance.

For this kind of small-scale sneak reconnaissance, it is not appropriate to use Qian Tiandun's special operations company. However, Qian Tiandun did not intend to just sit idle, but proposed to act together with Wang Tom and others. Although there were also objections, he believed that

The two senior commanders should not go deep into dangerous areas at the same time, but in the end Yan Chujie, who was sitting in the rear, made the decision and agreed to their request for action.

After nightfall, the "Speed ​​Speed" turned out from behind Hunyue Island and slowly sailed towards the coast. Nearly two hours later, the "Speed ​​Speed", which had been traveling in the dark all the way, completed this short journey and arrived near

the target location.

The South Vietnamese Army did not choose to station troops on this sandbank near the sea. After the "Speed" got close to the shore, it unscrupulously turned on the search equipment to confirm the coastal terrain, anchored near the shore, and then several people boarded the rubber inflatable boat.

Use the paddle to paddle to the shore.

Morgan lowered his voice and said: "I never thought that one day I would sneak into Vietnam in a rubber boat in the middle of the night."

"You are not the only one who has this idea!" Qian Tiandun also responded in a low voice.

Under the moonlight, it is difficult to see clearly this black rubber boat that rises and falls with the waves. After arriving at the beach, Qian Tiandun and Roger sitting in front jumped into the water and grabbed the handle of the bow with their hands.

, dragged the rubber boat to the beach and ran aground. Several other people also went down to the shore at this time, and everyone lifted the rubber boat to the land to avoid being swept away by the waves.

"Put on night vision goggles, check weapons, march along the foot of the hill at intervals of five meters, and pay attention to cover in front and behind." Wang Tom issued the action order as the commander.

Soon this heavily armed detachment was heading inland to the west along the hills surrounding the sandbar. They first had to confirm the location of the South Vietnamese military camp and the location suitable for their own defensive positions. They would wait until they return.

Find the shortest landing route from the seaside to the predetermined position.

The defense strength of the South Vietnamese military camp was obviously worse than the team had expected beforehand. There were not even early warning sentries outside the camp area - perhaps they also believed that it was impossible for the North Vietnamese Army to cross the sea and launch a sneak attack from their flanks and rear.

The team confirmed the layout of the South Vietnamese military camp, and then conducted a reconnaissance of the expected position area. The entire process did not alarm the South Vietnamese army at all. After completing the scheduled task, the team calmly conducted a comprehensive survey of the landing area.

Investigating - taking it easy was what I told the headquarters afterwards. The real reason was the delay in action due to poor visibility at night.

After completing all the reconnaissance work, the team once again rowed the rubber boat to board the "Speed", and then notified the "Exploration" waiting at sea. The two ships did not delay here anymore, and after rendezvous, they sailed north towards Yong'an Port overnight.

go.

"How is it?" Yan Chujie opened the tent curtain and walked in, asking Qian Tiandun and Wang Tom who had just returned to Hong Kong. When he was woken up by the orderly just now, he checked that the time was four in the morning. At this time, except for a few guards,

Apart from the personnel, the entire Yongan Port is still in a state of sleep.

"There are some minor discrepancies between the No. 2 alternative site and the information we have at hand, but we believe that it fully meets the operational needs and we can consider using the No. 2 alternative site as the second battlefield." Qian Tiandun reported in a concise and comprehensive manner.

"It's normal for there to be discrepancies. After all, the map we have is data from several centuries later. In these hundreds of years, the coastlines of these coastal areas will definitely change." Yan Chujie looked at the two people who looked slightly different under the light.

With a tired face, he stopped talking and called the orderly in: "Go and notify the kitchen to make some hot food and send it over. Hurry!"

"Let's first talk about our reconnaissance results in this area!" Qian Tiandun was still in the excitement stage at this time. He spread out the map and began to explain to Yan Chujie.

"The width of this pass is only two hundred meters. Compared with the No. 1 alternative location in the south, it is only about a quarter as wide. This means that we can invest four times as many troops on the unit-length defense line.

, and there is no need to worry about being attacked from both sides." Qian Tiandun pointed at the map and explained: "The South Vietnamese military camp is still some distance away from this pass, and the pass is located right behind their main camp. If we move quickly and concealedly enough, maybe we can

You won’t be discovered by the other side until you build the fortifications.”

"What if the opponent chooses to attack from the north and south over the mountain?" Yan Chujie asked.

"This is unlikely, because there is a flat attack channel at the bottom of the mountain to attract their attention. Before they suffer the pain, I am afraid they will not take the route of climbing over the mountain. We will establish early warning observation posts at the commanding heights. If necessary,

We will retreat to the coast and rely on the beachhead position and the artillery cover on the ship to attack the opponent. The area of ​​​​this area is too small. Although the South Vietnamese army is large in number, the attack area that can pose a threat to us is very limited." Wang Tom immediately answered Yan Chujie.

question.

"In addition, while we are opening up a second battlefield to attract South Vietnam's attention, we can also go to their rear to attack the supply line." Qian Tiandun added: "Based on what we have learned, we can speculate that the food and grass collected by the South Vietnamese army on the front line

There are not many, and their transportation capacity is limited. Once there is a problem with the supply line, it will quickly cause a chain reaction that affects the combat effectiveness of the front-line troops. By then, my company will be allowed to fight for the river for three to five days, which will cut off their logistical supplies.

The South Vietnamese Army had a difficult time."
To be continued...