Chapter 277: Navigating the Northeast (2)

In 1893, the population of Northeast China was 5.926 million. In the last census in the late Qing Dynasty, the population of the three Northeastern provinces surged to 19.77 million. Among them, the population of Liaoning Province was 11.0496 million in 1904.

Even so, the population in the Northeast is still small. In other words, the Northeast has a lot of room for development and improvement. One hundred years later in parallel history, the Northeast is an important granary of the country and the most suitable region for mechanized agriculture in the country.

Due to the sparse population, the governments of the three northeastern provinces concentrated their control over local power in cities and along railway lines. During Yuan Shikai's administration, the political structure of the Northeast was chaotic. The Japanese and Russians were extremely active in the Northeast, and could even be said to be walking sideways. Banditry was serious in the region.

, the officers and soldiers were unable to eliminate them at all, and the remnants of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, with the support of the Japanese, were rampant in activities and clamored for the Mongolian Manchu revolution. After Yuan Shikai's fall, more than 100,000 national defense troops entered the Northeast, and the local armed forces were either reorganized or disbanded on the spot.

After the National Defense Forces entered the Northeast, the focus was on guarding against Japan. It was not until the end of the Sino-Japanese Battle of Qingdao that the situation eased. After the declaration of war against Germany, the main force in the Northeast was transferred, and then the supplementary B Division and the new B Division were added.

While actively training, the focus turned to the eradication of banditry in various places. For more than a year, under the encirclement and suppression of powerful troops, all the beards in the Northeast were either eliminated, disbanded, or ran away and hid far away. Through the suppression of bandits,

Each unit gained a certain amount of practical experience in Northeastern conditions and tested the actual combat effectiveness of some equipment in cold conditions.

Fang Jianxiong's trip to the Northeast was meant to test the new troops. After the Sino-Japanese War, the Japanese forces gradually withdrew from the Northeast, leaving only Lushun. However, the Russian old man still stayed in Heilongjiang, with no intention of leaving.

When Fang Jianxiong's special train arrived in Shenyang (Fengtian), Jiang Fangzhen, who had arrived earlier, was already waiting at the train station.

After the two met, they were not polite, got in the car, and headed to the main camp in the north of Shenyang City. The permanent troops stationed in Shenyang were the 24th Division that was originally stationed in Dezhou. Later in the Qingdao Campaign, the 24th Division was transferred north to Shenyang.

Catching up with the transfer of other main forces, division commander Lin Shuqing was also transferred, and the 24th Division stayed and was responsible for the defense of Shenyang. Division commander He Chong was the first batch of training team members and the original chief of staff of the first mixed brigade of the Anhui Army. Because of his military exploits and

With a background from Wuhu, He Chong was promoted quickly.

Taking advantage of the new round of military expansion, a large number of first-term students of the teaching team have taken up the position of division commanders. These people are extremely loyal to Fang Jianxiong, far beyond those who are studying abroad. Now the division commanders of the National Defense Force are roughly divided into

There are three systems. The first is the teaching team system. There are ninety infantry divisions in the National Defense Force, and nearly sixty of the division commanders are from the teaching team. There is no doubt that it is the first system. The second system is the one that joined the training team in the early 1990s.

Those people, such as Zhang Zhenwu, Liu Yutang, Shen Tongwu and others, are also very loyal. After all, their own interests are tied to Fang Jianxiong. The third system is more complicated. There are old Beiyang people and local officers from various provinces.

, there are also some who are from the Democratic Party. This complex system itself cannot be urinated together. Can you expect Xu Chongzhi and Xu Shuzheng to be of the same mind? Can you expect Wu Peifu and Li Liejun to be of the same mind? In this system, those who have become teachers are all famous in history

There are only two people with Democratic Party status, Li Liejun and Xu Chongzhi. There are slightly more Beiyang, but they are also limited. Looking at the list of senior officers of the Expeditionary Force, it is not difficult to understand Fang Jianxiong’s thoughts. In the Expeditionary Force,

Aren't the majority of the military officers the same people from the miscellaneous system? It seems that a lot of troops have been mobilized, but in fact, when these people arrive in Europe, the threat posed by the so-called local powerful factions in the country is greatly reduced. When the European War is over, some

People will be promoted and directly transferred to the General Staff or the Ministry of National Defense. It will be difficult to gain access to military power. Except for those who replace these people, except for those who have no problem in history and are very capable in Fang Jianxiong's mind, other people's positions can only be taught.

Someone from the team took over. Not to mention, there was a group of Lu students chasing after him, screaming.

"Baili, has Xu Shuzheng arrived?" Fang Jianxiong asked this question after getting in the car.

"Xu Shuzheng, Wang Tianzong's two armor divisions, the two cavalry divisions Ma Qi and Ma Lin, plus the two engineering brigades, have all been assembled in Guisui (Hohhot). Fuguo, could you please slow down this matter?

Wait until the situation in Europe becomes clearer." Jiang Fangzhen raised this issue out of caution.

Fang Jianxiong shook his head: "Now is the time. I telegraphed Duan Qirui that we can now enter Xinjiang on a large scale. Yang Zengxin has been reluctant to come to Beijing to take up his post, so let the soldiers of our National Defense Force invite him."

Jiang Fangzhen nodded and said: "That's all we can do. This military operation is a game of chess in three directions. The key is how the Russians in Heilongjiang will react."

Fang Jianxiong glanced at the worried Jiang Fangzhen, and was secretly proud of himself. This chief of general staff was very capable and had far-reaching strategic vision. But he was not a time traveler and did not know what was about to happen.

"The Russians have nothing to worry about. There are not many Russians in Heilongjiang who can fight. The National Defense Forces have ten B divisions and five heavy artillery regiments. What do they have to worry about? Besides, if they don't move, we can't

Don't move. Kulun and Xinjiang are both Chinese territories. Our troops can't make any excuses when they drive there.

If the Russians dare to quarrel with each other, they will fight back resolutely. By the way, when it comes to this matter, Baili must pay attention. All units should be vaccinated in advance and the surveillance of the Russian troops in Harbin should be strengthened. Once they dare to fire the first shot,

We will resolutely eliminate them." Fang Jianxiong spoke with murderous intent. Although Jiang Fangzhen was a little worried, he was still very excited.

"How do you explain such a big military operation to Britain and France?" Jiang Fangzhen asked with a smile. Fang Jianxiong rolled his eyes and said: "Do we need to inform Britain and France about the mobilization of troops in our country? Yin Changheng sent troops to Lhasa in February, right?

Do you want the British to unify? I have never had the chance to settle the bad debt with the British on the McMahon Line."

Think about it carefully. There are no troops to reinforce Europe, but there are troops to eliminate unrest in the country. The French may be better, but the British will definitely jump on it, and Nicholas II of Russia will probably go crazy.

Once Kulun is captured, it means that the backbone of the Siberian Railway will be exposed to the Chinese, and the Eastern Railway may also change accordingly. Since Europe, the Russians have not given up any interests in China, and they are still thinking about the Boxer Indemnity.

Yes, the Republic of China government used the excuse that sending troops to Europe was too expensive and delayed payment.

"There is another thing about supporting the country. The two newly formed railway divisions are going to Xinjiang this time. If they are to build railways, are they not strong enough?" Jiang Fangzhen certainly knew the importance of Xinjiang, so he had

questioned.

Fang Jianxiong didn't mean to hide anything, and said with a smile: "There are two key tasks this year. The first is to use military means to resolve unrest in remote areas. You know this best. The second is to manage the Northeast and the

Xinjiang, including the Northeast, is related to the country's future development strategy. Let me tell you the truth here. I plan to immigrate 10 million people from all over the country to the Northeast within two years, vigorously develop Northeast agriculture, and transform the Northeast into

It will be built into an important granary for the country. In addition, Northeast China will be built into the most important granary in the country.

A large heavy industrial base needs to be built without roads, so it is necessary to issue railway bonds and build a railway corps. The two divisions now are just an attempt. In the future, it will be expanded to at least 200,000 people. The plan is five to eight years.

Within, repair Tongdi Hua Zhilan

The railway in the prefecture, the railway from Kulun to Guisui. The role of the railway soldiers is to push forward in the most difficult sections. After taking back the Kulun, we will stay put and wait for changes in Russia. If necessary, send a message to the Japanese, Kullun

There is oil on Page Island.”

Jiang Fangzhen was a little dumbfounded. He felt that the latter part was a bit unreliable, so he quickly interrupted: "Fuguo, you are acting like a charlatan again."

Fang Jianxiong laughed loudly and said: "Brother Baili, how about we make a bet? Within a year, Russia will be in chaos, and there will even be a civil war." Jiang Fangzhen said without hesitation: "No, I never gamble. Be honest.

, is there any new information?”

Fang Jianxiong nodded and lowered his voice: "The Germans are secretly planning to send some exiled Russian political prisoners back to Russia. At present, the anti-war sentiment in Russia is high, just like a haystack, just a little bit of the word "Mars" can turn it on.

In addition, the Russian offensive suffered a devastating blow at the end of last year, and now Russia has reached a critical point. If Tsar Nicholas II still refuses to give up the war, all that awaits him is a revolution."

Jiang Fangzhen understood, and said with a knowing smile: "So, once Russia is in civil strife, withdraws from the European war, or even breaks out, the Japanese will really go crazy if they know that there is oil in Sakhalin Island."

Fang Jianxiong slapped his thigh and said: "When the time comes, we will unite with Japan to send troops to carve up the Far East."

When Jiang Fangzhen heard this even more unreliable statement, he looked confused and said: "Have you started to become a magic stick? Isn't this justified?" Fang Jianxiong laughed proudly and said: "You will know then, I haven't yet.

Absolute certainty.”

"Okay, I'll wait patiently." Jiang Fangzhen also knew that if Fang Jianxiong didn't tell him, he wouldn't ask, and he would know sooner or later.

On January 10, 1919, the day Fang Jianxiong returned from his inspection in the Northeast, a force composed of two cavalry divisions, two infantry divisions and two engineering brigades set out from Guisui and went deep into the desert. On the same day,

Five cavalry divisions and two infantry divisions under the Lanzhou Military Region left Yumen Pass.

On the 15th, Fang Jianxiong returned to Beijing and immediately sent someone to invite Zhang Jian to his palace. Zhang Jian didn't know what was going on, but he didn't dare to neglect it. When he arrived at the palace, Fang Jianxiong didn't even greet him. Zhang Jian secretly screamed that something was wrong and he didn't.
Chapter completed!