Chapter eight hundred and thirteen the worries of the old coach
Yang Zhen, who was discussing the next step of the battle with Yang Jingyu and Wang Guangyu, didn't know that in the war room of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region Headquarters in Fuping County, Hebei Province, which had just concluded a combat meeting, hundreds of kilometers away from him. Among them, the teacher Yang Zhen spoke of, who was transferred from the commander of the Taihang Military Region to the commander of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region, was also frowning at this moment.
Looking at the frown on the old comrade's face, I don't know why my old comrade, who takes everything lightly and is always confident even when the situation is severe, has such an expression. At this moment, he has been changed from a military region commander and political commissar to a full-time political commissar. The old commander said with some confusion: "What's wrong, old man? This is the first time I've seen you with such a serious expression since the war of resistance against Japan."
"No matter when the Long March was the most arduous and the situation was the most difficult, whether it was the siege of Nanjiu Road in Shanxi Province in 1938 after crossing the Yellow River eastward and joining the anti-Japanese battlefield, whether the troops fought against the superior Japanese and puppet troops the year before last, or the Hundred Regiment War last year, we But I have never seen your brows furrowed so tightly."
"When your 129th Division crossed the Yellow River eastward, its equipment was the worst among the three divisions. At that time, half of the people in the division did not have guns, and the total number of bayonets was only more than fifty. On average, each person had only one bullet. When I fired dozens of rounds, your brother was doing it with ease, but now that the equipment is on, you are looking a little sad. This is not like your old friend's style."
"Now our main forces have greatly improved their equipment after receiving the equipment transferred from the Northeast. The battalion has four heavy machine guns, and the regiment has mortars, crooked handles, Czech machine guns and grenades, which have also reached One for each squad, and even formed its own artillery unit, and even used the replaced equipment to re-adjust and enrich some local troops."
"These equipments are things we never dared to think of before. Our troops' equipment has never been so good, and our ammunition has never been so abundant. It can be said that the entire army has replaced its guns with cannons. It can be said that the whole army is happy and thinking about it." Let’s fight the Japanese army.”
"Coupled with the fact that the current Commander of the Northeast Military Region, the largest wealthy man among our princes, and an old subordinate of your brother, will definitely spare no effort to cooperate in the battle. The main force of the Japanese army's garrison in Rehe Attracted by them again, the only ones left are some garrison troops and the Puppet Manchukuo army with relatively poor combat effectiveness. Although it cannot be said that everything is ready, it can be said that the location is favorable and the people are there. How come you, brother, are so arrogant? concern."
Hearing the ridicule of his old comrades, this famous general, known as one of China's three and a half military strategists, shook his head and said: "Political Commissar, things are not that simple. Our army has been focusing on this since the days of the Red Army. Mobile warfare and guerrilla warfare. Since the July 7th Incident, due to equipment constraints, we have mainly carried out anti-Japanese guerrilla warfare behind enemy lines."
"There are no head-to-head confrontations with the Japanese army, but they are mainly with small units. Our main force has been trying to avoid hard battles with the Japanese army, because we don't even have much ammunition on hand and we don't have the capital. , to confront the Japanese troops who were armed to the teeth."
"But this time we go north to cooperate with the Anti-Japanese Alliance to capture Rehe, we have to fight head-on with the Japanese army in several battles with aircraft, heavy artillery, and tanks. The scale of this time we go north is probably not what we do every time we carry out counter-mopping up. The few tanks, several aircraft, and several mountain guns dispatched by the Japanese army can be compared with the infantry artillery."
"Although our equipment is now available with the strong support of the Northeast Military Region, cadres at all levels seriously lack experience in face-to-face regular large-scale combat operations. Man, this kind of war is a brand-new combat mode that we have never been exposed to before. , the only experience we have in frontal combat is probably the five counter-encirclement and suppression campaigns we carried out in the past."
"But what kind of battle was we fighting at that time? It was not so much a frontal decisive battle, but more like a beggar and the Dragon King competing for treasure. Besides, the firepower of the national army at that time was simply not comparable to what it is now. It was not even on the same level at all. Speaking of miscellaneous troops, even the equipment of the Central Army cannot compare with the Japanese army."
"Since receiving the order from the central government, I have carefully studied the Battle of Songhu, the Battle of Wuhan, and the Battle of Xinkou fought under our noses. In a word, now that China's Anti-Japanese War has reached this situation, the Japanese army is far beyond the quality of its soldiers. In addition to being superior to the Nationalist Army, its firepower configuration is also not comparable to that of the Kuomintang Army during the five counter-encirclement and suppression campaigns."
"Back then, when we said that the enemy was strong and we were weak, it was only a relative comparison. At that time, the Kuomintang army seemed to us to be well-equipped, but in fact it only had a few small mountain field guns and some mortars. Not only were the weapons and equipment far behind It cannot be compared with the Japanese army. Even the quality of the soldiers and the abilities of the commanders, especially the abilities of the middle and lower-level officers, are also very different from the Japanese army."
"We have almost no similar experience in face-to-face combat with such an army that is armed to the teeth. Old man, whether it is your 115th Division or my 129th Division, they have mainly fought since the eastward journey. It is an ambush warfare that takes advantage of the terrain, and the combat targets are generally the Japanese logistics troops and small units."
"It's not that we intentionally avoid fighting, but our equipment is placed wherever it is. The entire army has made good guns in Hanyang, and they couldn't put it down even if they captured a Type 38. The entire 18th Army Headquarters only picked up the Jinsui Army. The artillery regiment has lost a few mountain guns and only a few shells. If we want to eat hard walnuts like the Japanese army, we must have good teeth."
"But even so, we mostly won miserably. After the war of resistance in recent years, you also know the situation. It is simply impossible to use the tactics used to defeat the Kuomintang army in the past to deal with the Japanese army. And our grassroots commanders, tactics Lack of literacy is the biggest headache."
"The arrival of equipment does not mean that the quality of our troops has also improved. The quality and capabilities of our troops, especially the commanders at all levels, are still not comparable to the current equipment, especially the lack of qualified combat staff, and Now that the troops have become accustomed to carrying out guerrilla warfare independently, fighting this kind of battle still requires a long process of adaptation and learning."
"The equipment of our troops is now up, but whether the commanders at all levels have the ability to complete the task assigned to us by our superiors is my biggest headache and the most worrying thing. Brigade, regiment, battalion, company, platoon , there are so many levels of commanders, and any level of incompetence will affect the operation."
"This operation is of great significance to our future development, especially the development of the Northeast Anti-Japanese War. I am not worried that most of our army's troops, especially most of its senior commanders, will We are simply not used to fighting this kind of battle at the moment."
"Our commanders are not so much senior commanders as senior infantry commanders. We have artillery, but some of our commanders know artillery and a few know synthetic tactics. Once their positions are up, their abilities will increase." But it’s subject to conditions.”
"This operation is different from last year's Hundred Regiment War. Last year, the guerrillas were dispersed and fought individually. But now the whole army is attacking Jehol. The situation is completely different from last year. It is simply impossible to copy last year's operation mode. The reorganization of the entire military region and its affiliated units is imminent, but we lack senior commanders."
"The central government has tried its best to mobilize a group of senior commanders, but the number and capabilities are far behind our requirements for this operation. The commanders of the field columns currently organized by the military region basically do not command the infantry and artillery. There is really a lack of experience in coordinated operations and combined operations."
"The Anti-Japanese Federation sent us instructors, and the army's tactical application has been greatly improved. However, the ability of the cadres has only been improved to a limited extent. They sent us ground and air instructors, but we did not carry out any training at all. Through coordinated ground and air operations, I am really worried that my own planes will not hit the Japanese troops, but will blow up our own troops instead."
"Old man, this time we go north to fight in your Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region, my 129th Division, and the Taihang Military Region are all elite. It is estimated that the situation in the 120th Division and the Shanxi-Sui Military Region is similar, and what we are going to face Not only the Kwantung Army in Rehe, but also the North China Front Army and the Mongolian garrison army, it can be said that they are surrounded by enemies on all sides."
"The 129th Division and the Taihang Military Region are just a few fist troops, but the old foundation of your Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei region is here. If this battle doesn't go well, my personal honor and disgrace will be a trivial matter, but if I put The old foundation of the two military regions has been destroyed, which means the loss is too great."
"Old man, how come such a severe situation doesn't make me feel like I'm walking on thin ice? After receiving a large number of equipment transferred from the Northeast, the level of the troops has indeed improved, but the corresponding capabilities of commanders at all levels have not been substantially improved. Now that I have so many key troops in my hands, the pressure is not small."
As for Yang Zhen, the company commander of the 129th Division at that time, this veteran who had been in the military for half his life shook his head and sighed: "It is embarrassing enough. I, the teacher and commander of the 129th Division at that time, when it comes to pulling The team's ability is far inferior to that of the old subordinate from the Northeast Military Region. In terms of conditions and environment, ours back then was not much better than him."
"The 115th Division you are leading and my 129th Division are nothing else. The enemy situation and people's situation in the surrounding areas are far better than them. The troops under your command have also been tested by the Long March. The old Red Army, in terms of the quality of its troops, is much better than those rabble who escaped from the Japanese concentration camps."
"At that time, the Japanese army, which was busy conquering cities and territories, put its main energy and troops on the frontal battlefield, and had no time to take care of us in the rear. It is precisely because of this that we were able to develop rapidly, but the number of soldiers has increased. But don’t mention anything else.”
"But look at it now, they have strong troops, planes, tanks, heavy artillery, and equipment that we couldn't even imagine before. They are already fully equipped, and they fight more beautifully every battle. Now we old superiors, We still have to fight against others' Qiu Feng, and we can only fight a decent battle with their help."