Chapter 127 If you are not convinced, give it a try
The autumn air is crisp and the morning breeze is gentle.
After arranging the security mission, the commander of the fourth regiment, Chen Chenggong, took his adjutant and two guards, got on his horse and rushed to Tonggu City in the west. At this time, Chen Chenggong was deeply depressed, and kept thinking about the "original plan" issued by the division headquarters early in the morning.
What does the order to "rest the ground and strengthen vigilance" mean? From Liuyang to Tonggu, we have made great progress in just a few days. How long will it take if we don't strike while the iron is hot and pursue victory?
After bathing in the morning sun, Chen Chengcheng and his party came to Shuaijiaba in the east of the city. He was surprised by the lively scene inside and outside the model camp.
Chen Chengcheng didn't have time to look at the famous giant stone bronze drum standing quietly in the clear water at the foot of the lush Dawei Mountain. He rode his horse to the camp gate and asked the sentry: "What are you doing? What is the use of that high platform built by the water?"
"Sir, our instructor said that we have built a stage, and from today onwards there will be opera troupes coming to sing operas. He also said that people from all over the city and villages will come to watch our military skills performance. He ordered all brothers to maintain order.
Improve the relations between the military and the people... In the evening, there are extra dishes, including braised pork." A sentry from the Jiangxi company knew Chen Chengi, and he answered cheerfully when he asked.
Chen Chengyi laughed: "Where is your battalion commander?"
"We rode into the city on a little black pony just before dawn. Vice Hu Ying and Staff Officer Yin also went together, taking the brothers from the Second Company to help the people in the city build roads and repair houses." the sentry replied.
Chen Chengyi nodded and left, secretly praising the model camp for its perseverance in paving the way for people to build bridges wherever they went.
According to the experiments of the model camp over the past few months, it is very reasonable and necessary for each regiment to maintain an engineer company. Everywhere we go, the camp construction of each department cannot do without full-time engineers, but now each regiment uses infantry.
Completed, it would be a blessing for every regiment and battalion-level commander to have a company like the model battalion's engineer company that can both fight and perform efficient and high-speed construction. What's more, An Yi's engineer company has already mastered the construction of small bridges and pontoon bridges.
Professional skills such as fortification construction and obstacle blasting are difficult for ordinary infantry to possess. They are the shortcomings that the main regiments urgently need to supplement at the moment.
For more than two months, Chen Jieqi, Hui Dongsheng, Jiang Dingwen and others who were deeply touched have repeatedly raised this issue at division headquarters work meetings, but there have been no signs of concrete implementation. Although Chen Jicheng was anxious, he could only
Be patient.
Chen Chengyi and his party walked a few hundred meters on horseback. Before entering the city, they saw the "Model Camp" flag stuck diagonally on the big tree trunk on the roadside, which was particularly conspicuous. The sentry posts set up by the officers and soldiers of the Model Battalion on both sides of the road were standardized and practical. Each sentry post
In front of them stood two sentinels armed with live ammunition.
In the middle of the long and narrow road, more than a hundred engineers and soldiers were working intensively on the uneven road. Hundreds of people carried stones and baskets of gravel and sand to the places designated by the officers and soldiers. The soldiers and civilians spoke the same language.
The relationship was harmonious. Several elderly people who brought tea to the officers and soldiers kept asking about their names and places of origin. The officers and soldiers answered politely and did not dare to be perfunctory. The soldiers and civilians happily communicated and chatted while working, truly embodying the slogan of close military-civilian relations.
turned into action.
Walking further in, slogans such as "The military and the people are in harmony with each other", "The National Revolutionary Army is the soldiers of the people", "Salute to the Tonggu Fathers and Folks", "Down with the warlords and have enough food and clothing" are posted everywhere on both sides of the street. A battalion of the Fifth Regiment was in the regimental politics
Under the leadership of the instructor, the streets were cleaned and garbage and waste were removed. Hundreds of people gathered in front of the high wall on the left side of the county government office in the city, listening with interest to the old master in the city reading the notice aloud.
Chen Chengcheng watched with great interest, stood still and watched, and got a rough idea from the old master with a loud voice. The meaning of the announcement was: In order to repay the kindness of the Tonggu folks, the officers and soldiers of the Second Division of the First Army of the National Revolutionary Army are going to be in the city.
A stage is set up next to the famous Tonggu in the East to sing operas, and a Tonggu opera troupe is hired to perform on the stage. Folks from all over the county can go and watch at will. Starting from this afternoon, such military and civilian celebrations will be held every morning and afternoon to celebrate the Tonggu people.
During the liberation, the revolutionary officers and soldiers will also perform military training events such as formation, martial arts, and shooting to the fellow villagers. All heroes and warriors of Tonggu are welcome to come and give guidance.
The crowd from three levels inside and three outside surrounded the county government office door. After finding out what was going on, they immediately left happily and rushed to tell each other.
The streets are becoming more and more lively. People coming and going are talking about the grand stage and the revolutionary army drills. The dark crowds around are leaving one after another. This kind of new thing, which is rare in ten years, really makes me happy.
The people in the small town, who had no spiritual enjoyment, were overjoyed and felt fresh.
After thinking about it for a while, Chen Chengyi determined that this must be another idea that An Yi came up with, but he didn't know what he wanted to achieve.
Chen Chengyi and his party arrived at the Xiao Family Ancestral Hall at the division headquarters. They dismounted and walked into the ancestral hall courtyard. They saw Yin Jinan sitting under a big tree and listening to several instructors reading speeches. On the other side of the yard, deputy division commander Jiang Dingwen sat around a stone table.
Hui Dongsheng, commander of the Sixth Regiment, Kuang Shijie, director of the munitions department, An Yi, Hu Jialin and seven or eight others, I don't know what Jiang Dingwen said that made everyone laugh.
When Hui Dongsheng saw Chen Chengi, he quickly raised his hand to signal Chen Chengi to sit next to him: "How is the recruitment situation at your place?"
"There has been no progress. Many people have come to inquire but few have joined. I guess we need to let the public understand the process." Chen Chengyi took a sip of tea from the orderly behind him, put down the cup and asked everyone why they were laughing so much.
happy.
Hui Dongsheng laughed softly and said: "I guess our main group can't handle this guy An Yi. He has turned the entire Tonggu County upside down. Not only did he fill the streets with slogans, but he also invited two famous theater troupes from the county.
At three o'clock in the afternoon, they performed at the scenic spot in the east of the city with gongs and drums. During the opera, several of their companies had to show off their unique skills to the people, so that the people could see the majesty of the revolutionary army while watching the opera, and everyone was confused.
He announced the recruitment matter at the time. With the Model Camp coming out like this, why can’t he lure young people from the entire county, including the surrounding villages, to join him?”
"No wonder I didn't see one of the slogans on the street recruiting soldiers. This guy is awesome! This method is quite new, but why do I think it looks like the usual tactic of selling Dali Pills on the street?"
Chen Jiheri's exclamation caused a burst of laughter. Everyone thought that this was really what happened. The seller of Dali Pills always performed a show of breaking bricks with his hands, cracking large rocks in his chest, etc. Then he picked up a big knife and danced it a few times to win a round of applause.
Sheng immediately started selling medicine. Compared with the one who sells Dali Pills, An Yi's tricks have a different appearance, but they are actually from the same source.
Jiang Dingwen looked at Chen Chengi with a smile: "You don't know this. What Xiao Yi said is to use a form that people like to hear and see to widely advertise the revolutionary principles and conscription matters, which is called advertising for short. They also have an idea, which is
Set up a bonus of 500 yuan to encourage those with martial arts skills among the people of Tonggu to compete on stage. Do you understand? He and Hu Zi want to select elite soldiers. I guess you regiments didn't think of it. It seems that the political instructors of each regiment
The work ideas and publicity methods still need to be improved, haha!”
Chen Chengyi looked at An Yi in surprise: "Is that big stage being built a ring?"
An Yi laughed and said: "Exactly, but it can't be called an arena. That would be too vulgar. Our revolutionary army is not a brave and ruthless person, but a regular armed force with lofty revolutionary ideals, so it should be called a military skills competition stage.
, let people with lofty ideals with special skills join the melting pot of revolution, work together to overthrow the evil old warlords, smash the cannibalistic old world, and work together to build a happy new republic based on the Three People's Principles, haha!"
"Huh? Everyone, as far as I know, An Yi was born in the ranks of profiteers. After joining the revolution, he used smooth methods to get both sides. He has never been involved in politics. He is a well-known centrist among our teachers and students in Huangpu. How can he say a set of tricks today?
He's almost catching up with my instructor. This is not like An Yi under normal circumstances! The An Yi I know is a hard-working and profit-seeking person. Since the Northern Expedition, I have never seen this guy doing loss-making business.
He can't be found in anything that doesn't mean he can make money cheaply, and he will never do anything that is just to make money. How come he suddenly has such a high level of consciousness now?"
Chen Chenggifeng made a joke about An Yi to everyone.
Everyone laughed, but An Yi, who was sitting next to Jiang Dingwen, didn't care. He grabbed Jiang Dingwen's good cigarettes and distributed them around, lighting them for everyone happily. Even the bearded man who had just met Hui Dongsheng, a fellow villager, also enjoyed An Yi.
Yi thoughtful service.
An Yi put on the attentive look of a younger brother serving his elder brother, handing out cigarettes and lighting the fire respectfully, showing such meticulous care that people couldn't help but laugh again.
Only Jiang Dingwen knew in his heart that An Yi's cigarette was not Bai Jing's. It contained a vague apology in An Yi's heart, because dozens of officers and soldiers from Jiangxi under An Yi had quietly gone out before dawn to paste slogans and respectfully invite people to nearby villages.
When villagers go to the city to watch a play, it is estimated that the number of these people will double when they come back. Faced with the all-round recruitment methods of the model camp, the beautiful recruitment wishes of Chen Chengyi and Hui Dongsheng's regiments may not be realized.
At noon, Liu Zhi invited his generals to have a meal. During the dinner, Xu Tingyao urged each regiment to set up sentries throughout the rest period, strictly check the passers-by, and absolutely ensure the safety within ten kilometers of their camp.
Halfway through the meal, Jiang Dingwen got several bottles of Shuanggou Daqu from nowhere and put them on the table, making the brothers drink red.
At two o'clock in the afternoon, after having had enough wine and food, a group of generals and commanders rode on tall horses and left the division headquarters in the west of the city to go to the grand stage in the east of the city to watch.
What I saw along the way through the city was extremely lively. The clean streets were lined with very friendly slogans. Groups of villagers who received the good news entered the city one after another. Under the stimulating depictions of many residents in the city, they quickly rushed to the east side of the city.
Watching a theater in Jiaba is such a grand event that it can definitely rival the annual temple fair.
Groups of officers and soldiers from the Fifth Regiment who were responsible for patrolling and guarding stood at attention and saluted Liu Zhi and his party from time to time, making the dark crowd around them turn their attention.
Liu Zhi turned around and waved to An Yi. When An Yi came to his side on horseback, he asked in a low voice: "The folk customs in this Tonggu area have always been fierce. From the Ming Dynasty to the present, there are endless banditry and endless eradication. Now, this area
The surrounding nine holes and eighteen villages are all occupied by heroes from all walks of life. Among them, there must be heroes with strong martial arts skills. You have made such a big noise. If you are beaten into disgrace, it will not look good on our revolutionary army, right?
"
"Master, please rest assured. I have taken all possible situations into consideration. We have also formulated the rules. It is not just a matter of carrying a sword and a spear and going to the stage to compete one-on-one. Besides, there are many brothers under my command.
He has been practicing martial arts since he was a child, and has been on the battlefield and engaged in life-and-death hand-to-hand combat. His experience against enemies is definitely better than that of the green forest figures who only know how to rob. Even if it is a one-on-one competition, we still have Hu Hu, the heir of Baguazhang, and Xia Jian, the Nan.
If you send high-ranking disciples from the Eagle Claw Sect to suppress the formation, are you still afraid of what new tricks those gangsters from the Nine-Dong and Eighteen Villages will play? Master, don't worry!" An Yi replied confidently.
Liu Zhi nodded reassuringly: "Everything must be handled carefully and no one will be killed. There have been constant rebellions in this area over the years, but it is no better than other places. What you are doing now is a bit arrogant. Although it looks peaceful on the surface, in reality
The above is issuing a challenge to the heroes from all walks of life in Tonggu, which means: If you don’t accept it, try it.”
An Yi chuckled: "Master, doesn't this just follow Master's wishes? Originally, Master and several officers asked their subordinates to make a big noise, and the subordinates obeyed the orders and were not afraid of the Tonggu Nine Cave and Eighteen Villages.
Everyone is coming, but I’m afraid they won’t dare to come, haha!”
Liu Zhi chuckled and sped forward. As soon as he left the east of the city, he saw a large stage draped in red and green by the Dingjiang River in front of Tonggu Mountain. Eight revolutionary army flags and party flags were placed at the highest point of the stage and fluttered in the wind. The front of the stage was wide.
The bank of the river was bustling with people, and it was already filled with a dense crowd of spectators. At a rough glance, there were more than 2,000 people, and groups of people were still rushing in from all directions.
The generals entered the camp on the left side of the stage and dismounted under the attention of thousands of people. Lu Xiong, the platoon leader who was the star officer on duty, waved to An Yi from a distance. An Yi said sorry to Liu Zhi and others and strode over. After listening to Lu Xiong's speech
Reporting that Lehaha came back, he loudly reported to Liu Zhi and others:
"As of one hour ago, 167 local young people have joined our revolutionary army. There are still a large number of young people in villages and towns around the county who are interested in joining the army and are still hesitant. As long as we add more firepower, this number will be within three days.
Double that, and optimistically estimate that our model camp will have no problem recruiting 500 recruits, haha!"
Everyone was extremely surprised when they heard this, especially the leaders, deputy officers, and instructors of the three main regiments. They were all very puzzled. Each of their regiments arrived more than a day earlier than the Anyi Model Camp. The Fourth Regiment and the Sixth Regiment sent out various people to lobby.
It only took two days to recruit thirty or forty people. How could the engineer battalion recruit more than one hundred and sixty in one go? It was also optimistically estimated that it could recruit five hundred recruits, which made it difficult for the generals of several main regiments to believe it.
.
Everyone looked at each other for a moment, and Chief of Staff Xu Tingyao, who was full of doubts, asked: "Xiaoyi, how sure are you that you can recruit five hundred new soldiers?"
An Yi replied solemnly: "Chief of Staff, if you can allocate five hundred spears to your subordinates, your recruitment speed will be faster."
Xu Tingyao was very curious: "Five hundred spears don't matter. There are still more than 800 semi-new and old spears in the munitions department. Almost all of them are made in Hanyang. As long as I can recruit five hundred new soldiers, what's the problem in allocating them to you? But first
Tell us, how confident are you that you can achieve this goal?"
"After investigation, several of my subordinates learned that in addition to the nearly 100,000 people in the 20 villages and towns surrounding Tonggu City, there are at least fifteen armed groups of bandits gathering in the mountains within a hundred miles of Tonggu City. The total number of these bandits
The number of people is no less than 1,800, so the number reported by my subordinates to recruit 500 people is still very conservative. As long as we continue..."
An Yi stopped here and saw that the generals and commanders who had already whetted their appetites had gathered around him, so he whispered a series of his plans and agitation methods.
When everyone heard this, they were greatly impressed. Liu Zhi nodded frequently with satisfaction, Jiang Dingwen burst into laughter, and Xu Tingyao said three good words in a row. The other generals of the regiments were filled with admiration and regret, and the political instructors of the three regiments all lowered their heads in shame and admitted.