Regarding Yang Zhen's question, Ye Chao did not answer immediately, but thought for a moment before speaking: "Political commissar, this Zhang Tao was the secret underground liaison officer of the underground transportation station in the Hunan-Jiangsu area during the three-year guerrilla war.
Escorted many passing senior cadres and many supplies."
"After the troops from various guerrilla zones in the south of the Yangtze River were concentrated in southern Anhui to form the New Fourth Army, he has been serving as a scout in the reconnaissance section of the military headquarters. He has rich experience in fighting the enemy and reconnaissance, and has performed outstandingly in many battles. In the military headquarters
Among the scouts, their reconnaissance ability is definitely one of the best."
"At least the contact during the period of working together in the military department convinced me that he would never betray the whereabouts of the troops. Moreover, after he was transferred to work in southern Jiangsu, his performance was also outstanding. He was involved in various counterattacks in southern Jiangsu.
He has made great contributions many times during the mopping up struggle. Political commissar, we should not doubt such a person."
Ye Chaoneng was appointed at this critical moment and was promoted to the deputy chief of the combat section. He was still very flexible. As soon as Yang Zhen asked what he said, Ye Chao immediately understood what he meant. How could those miscellaneous armed forces control the marching order of the troops?
It was so accurate that it specifically targeted the fleet behind the troops. Most people would think that this was probably because someone deliberately leaked the marching sequence of the main force.
Although Yang Zhen didn't say it explicitly, Ye Chao could tell that the political commissar was somewhat skeptical about Zhang Tao's suggestion to walk along the Langchuan River and go straight to Dongxia Town. However, the political commissar's suspicion did not make Ye Chao give up his principles. Regarding Zhang Tao's suggestion
He was trustworthy as a person. Therefore, in front of Yang Zhen, Ye Chao still defended Zhang Tao.
Regarding Ye Chao's defense of Zhang Tao, Yang Zhen did not answer him, but shook his head and said calmly: "Ye Chao, although you have not been with me for a long time, you see that I am the kind of person who blames me for nothing.
Are you someone who doesn’t trust his subordinates and always suspects that someone is a spy or a traitor?”
"This time the military headquarters was attacked on the Langchuan River. Although it was only the troops behind the cover that suffered certain losses, the cause of the attack still needs to be found out as much as possible. At least how did those stubborn troops know that there was a huge Nanyi
On the lake, will we take the line along the Langchuan River? Especially since our first echelon troops have landed in the east of the lake, we will set up an ambush along the line at the mouth of the Langchuan River."
"Did we get targeted by these people as soon as we arrived at Nanyi Lake, or did someone intentionally leak our actions? You know, there is a long gap between the time the military commander sends me a telegram and the time the first echelon ships return.
Time can make people lose track. We only have sailboats at hand, and we move slowly on the lake. But on land, the speed of delivering messages is much faster."
"The first reason is not terrible. The main problem is that we underestimate the enemy. We only regard the regular army in the third theater as our opponent, and underestimate the stubborn locals in those places. But if it is the second reason, then we have to think about it.
Yes. It’s not terrible to have borers, but if you can’t get rid of them in time, the threat will be much greater.”
Regarding Yang Zhen's words, Ye Chao thought about it carefully and said: "Political Commissar, I think the whereabouts of the military and the main force should have been tracked on the Nanyi Lake. There are reeds everywhere around Nanyi Lake, hiding a few
It is not difficult to keep a small boat undetected."
"Although there is only one big river, the Langchuan River, there are countless small rivers flowing into the surrounding areas. There are many river branches that can hide people. These river branches are interconnected and large ships cannot enter, but small boats with shallow drafts can't enter.
, but it is flexible and can move at will."
"Most of the local gangsters around Nanyi Lake are developed by local armed forces, and quite a few of them are even fishermen and sailors who were born and raised near Nanyi Lake. Among them, there are even some lake bandits from the early years. These people
Not only are they familiar with the terrain, but they are also very capable in water and boating. If they want to figure out our movements, they don't need a big boat."
"For these local snakes, it is much clearer than us where these river branches can be connected to the outside world and where they lead. Which river branches are connected to each other. There are reed marshes there, and the reed marshes there can hide people.
, they are much more familiar with it than we are.”
"Political Commissar, you are from the north, but you don't know that on this lake, the transportation capacity of small boats is indeed inferior to that of large ships, and their stability is much worse. But in terms of flexibility and maneuverability, they are far superior to large ships. And we have organized
The types of fleets crossing the lake are also relatively complex. In order to take care of the performance of various ships, the speed cannot be fast."
"They can take advantage of the maneuverability of the small boat and their familiarity with the geographical conditions around the lake. They are absolutely sure to rush back to the mouth of Langchuan River ahead of us. Moreover, the political commissar. Although these stubborn armed forces are not strong in combat effectiveness, they are also extremely poorly trained.
.But there is one thing that the regular army cannot match."
"As local snakes, they have many more sources of information. Their ability to collect intelligence is no less than or even better than that of regular intelligence agencies. The fishermen and merchant ships on the lake all have their informants. I'm afraid we are secretly
We gathered boats and prepared them when necessary, but we were spotted by them when we were on the water of Nanyi Lake."
"Political commissar, these people are all local snakes, and they all have their own unique sources of information. Although we raise ships, we do it in extremely secretive circumstances. But we can hide it from the intelligence agencies of the Third War Zone and the Second Guerrilla Zone.
, but it’s hard for us to hide it from them.”
"When our intelligence officers were raising ships, in order to clear up a local armed force that controlled nearly half of the fishing boats in Nanyi Lake and prevent them from causing trouble, the army commander once specially approved 15 rifles and 10,000 rounds of ammunition as money to buy the passage.
It was given to them secretly. Otherwise, it would be difficult for us to raise so many ships."
"However, there are local armed forces of various sizes around Nanyi Lake, with or without establishment. Not counting the Langxi Security Group, there are seven or eight. Some are adapted from the local militia, and some are under the Qinghong Gang.
, some were formed by stragglers who had retreated here before."
"These armed forces each occupy one area. Although they cannot be said to be kings and hegemons, they have their own spheres of influence. As for the Second Guerrilla Zone, because these people are still useful, no action has been taken against them. Which group attacked them?
Is the true intention of the fifth fleet fleet just to gain some benefits, or is there some other reason? We have to investigate carefully."
"But political commissar, I can't guess their true intentions and identities, and I'm not too sure about what the terrain around Nanyi Lake is like. But one thing I know is very clear. That's why they
Choosing the location of the attack downstream of Dongxia Town may have something to do with them."
They started their business on Nanyi Lake. Their foundation is here and their sphere of influence is also here. This means that their scope of activities is destined to be inseparable from Nanyi Lake. To the east of Dongxia Town is the plain area. Let these rely on Nanyi Lake.
Yihu sanitation is rooted in Nanyihu. If the guys leave the lake and go to other places, it will be more uncomfortable than killing them." "And there is the enemy-occupied area in southern Jiangsu to the north. It's a blessing that the Japanese army doesn't come to sweep them away.
, where they dare to go north into southern Jiangsu to make extra money, unless they want to attract the target of the Japanese army’s next raid on themselves. In Nanyi and Hubei, except for those who have colluded with the puppet forces, generally these guys are not
Dare to go there and do activities easily."
"There are quite a number of these miscellaneous armed forces around the lake, not only those from the Third War Zone and the Second Guerrilla Zone, but also from the Japanese and puppet forces in Wuhu and southern Jiangsu. There are even many people who take advantage of both. These people are all
They have their own spheres of influence, and their daily interactions are generally relatively harmonious. They don't easily go to other people's territory for activities."
"On land, even though our troops are extremely tired now and suffered a lot of losses in the previous battles, these guys don't dare to attack us easily because they know that not only will they not be able to take advantage of them in a land battle,
It’s cheap, and you might even lose all your original capital.”
"But the Langchuan River mouth is different. I'm afraid even the locals don't necessarily know how many river branches there are that can connect it to Nanyi Lake. If they can't take advantage, they get on the boat and retreat to the lake. We basically
There is nothing we can do to capture them. In addition to our troops not being used to water battles, we also don’t have that much time to search for them on such a large lake."
"So, I think that the attack on the military headquarters was premeditated by them. And I'm afraid our troops will be targeted by them as soon as they arrive at Nanyi Lake. However, the attack on the military headquarters and the main force this time
, we cannot easily draw conclusions until we investigate clearly which force is behind it."
"Because these guys all know that they don't have a lot of money on hand, and they are also very clear about the reasons why the Third War Zone and the Second Guerrilla Zone have recruited them. They know even better that they are just used as targets by the Second Guerrilla Zone. Once
If our army retaliates, the Second Guerrilla Zone will probably not give them any assistance."
"So these people will not easily attack us in their own territory, because they know that even if our army withdraws to southern Jiangsu, given the distance between Nanyi Lake and southern Jiangsu, our army will still have no problem if we want to retaliate against them. However,
Various forces around Nanyi Lake are intertwined. Although it is quite complicated, the line from the mouth of Langchuan River to Dongxia Town is an exception."
"This area does not belong to the sphere of influence of any local armed forces, but is directly controlled by the Second Guerrilla Zone. From the mouth of Langchuan River to Dongxia Town, it is one of the main defense lines of the Second Guerrilla Zone, and it is also the main water transportation between Langxi area and southern Jiangsu.
line. So the second column has been garrisoned here by the confidants of the commander-in-chief of the second guerrilla zone."
"The local armed forces here were all forcibly driven away by the commander-in-chief. Now the second column of the advance has been transferred by the 32nd Army to go south to clear us. In this area, except for a few loyal rescuers, there are basically no
Regular main forces are stationed. For those local armed forces who want to make some extra money, this is definitely the first choice place."
"If you choose here, you can take advantage of the opportunity to make a profit without having to face our retaliation. The most important thing is that you don't have to go deep into the inland to give the commander-in-chief an excuse to eliminate and integrate. These miscellaneous armed forces themselves are
Those who survive by the barrel of a gun, without the barrel of a gun, they have nothing. So they simply dare not cross the activity area designated for them by the commander-in-chief of the second guerrilla zone."