The officers present were silent. It was easy to understand that the enemy wanted to attack the west. At present, they could infer that the east where the enemy wanted to "attack" was Yunan County. So where was this "west"?
Judging from the map, there are more than a dozen county towns and important fortification nodes along the Xijiang River. Each node is defended by at least one squadron of the National Army. These National Army are the first batch to be mobilized, and they will be urgently supplemented later.
The second batch of mobilized national troops are not of the same level in terms of equipment and training - none of them are easy to chew. It is impossible to get them without concentrating five or six times the strength of the defenders and equipped with a considerable number of firearms.
of these nodes.
The Fubo Army implements a fragmented contract system on the Xijiang River. If a certain area is besieged or there is news that a large number of enemies have gathered, troops will be dispatched from various strongholds in the area to fight. Unless there is a headquarters for the troops in other areas,
Mobilize, otherwise generally not join the battle.
Therefore, if the enemy Shengdong's target is Yunan County, then his real target should be the upstream and downstream strongholds centered on Yunan County.
Among these strongholds, Fengchuan County is the most tempting target. This is the transportation node to Hejiang. Lianqin has military depots and hospitals here, and has a large stockpile of supplies. But this place is obviously tough, let alone
The bandits gathered in Wuhewa could not be defeated even if the Ming Dynasty's official army came to attack them.
Among the counties downstream of Yunan County, the most valuable is Zhaoqing. However, Zhaoqing is a harder city than Fengchuan. As the front finger of western Guangdong and the location of the First Brigade Headquarters, Zhaoqing has a harder bone.
"Since the enemy wants to concentrate their forces and carry out a strategy of 'attacking in the east and attacking in the west', it is obvious that they will not aim at capturing a small stronghold or an unknown county. Moreover, their strategy is to incite bandits - Yunan County is just
A bait to attract bandits to work for their lives." Mi Longtao expressed his reasoning.
"What the officer said is absolutely true!" Zhu Si quickly agreed.
Li Shenggang did not express any objection. In his opinion, this was just correct nonsense in the "opening statement". He nodded slightly.
"But based on the military quality and operational capabilities of the bandits, this point cannot be Zhaoqing, nor can it seal Sichuan," said Mi Longtao. "I personally speculate that the most likely place is Wuzhou!"
As soon as the word Wuzhou was spoken, Zhu Si immediately shuddered.
Wuzhou is located at the forefront, close to the Ming army retreating to Guangxi. Once the defenders are mobilized by the bandits and the interior is empty, it is not impossible for the Ming army to gather heavy troops for a counterattack - and Xiong Wencan is also in urgent need of a big victory: recovery
Wuzhou is better than recovering Yunan County.
"So, our squadron should return to defend Wuzhou as soon as possible..." Zhu Si was slightly afraid of this increasingly dangerous situation. Here, the Wuzhou Integrated Squadron often has to act independently under field conditions, which puts pressure on him
Too big—I often feel like I’m not capable enough.
Back in Wuzhou, the backbone of Qian Duo was there, so he didn't have to take any responsibility. He didn't believe that the Ming army could take Wuzhou at all - Wuzhou was the largest city in western Guangdong. Not only did Qian Duo's company exist in the city, but Zhu Quanxing led it outside the city.
Although the specific location of a battalion of the Fubo Army is not known, it is certainly not far from Wuzhou. Although it is located on the front line, the safety factor is very high.
"In my opinion, Yunan County is not just 'Shengdong', it is probably under real siege." Li Shenggang spoke. Unlike Mi Longtao, he had a very serious expression and basically did not chat with others.
Powerful, "The Ming army's plan is probably to use bandits as cannon fodder to attract our troops - after all, the greater the pressure on Yunan County, the greater the possibility that the front finger will draw reinforcements from Wuzhou and other places, so the enemy must
We will use considerable force to attack Yunan County. The pressure we face will not be small at all. It is not appropriate to divide our troops yet."
Mi Longtao agreed.
Zhu Si was speechless and had no choice but to "resolutely obey the distribution."
The meeting decided that the entire army would return to Fengchuan the next day, and half of the Wuzhou Squadron would be temporarily stationed in Xugang for a few days to be responsible for training the local militia. Some of the captured firearms and weapons were also left for the local people - naturally this glorious and troublesome task
It fell on Li Dong's head.
"Xugang is a larger village in this area, with a large population, and now many people from other places have flocked in to seek refuge. You have to take this opportunity to establish a militia - there are only members of the Xu family here, so that won't work."
Zhu Si understood clearly that the chief was the most taboo about clan power. At present, the Xu family is a force that maintains social stability and must be fully utilized, but the "slowly plan" thing can be done. Naturally, this is not easy to do.
, Fortunately, it was decided that Li Dong would stay, so he felt relaxed.
The next day, after leaving fifty soldiers and various firearms from the right detachment of the Wuzhou Squadron commanded by Li Dong in Xu Gang, the rest of the team left Xu Gang and returned to Fengchuan County.
"This is obviously Yunan County, why are we stationed here?" Luo Mao couldn't help but complain as he looked at the black smoke that dissipated as the fleet gradually moved away.
Li Dong couldn't understand either, so he said: "Stop complaining, this is an order. If you are told to garrison, you will garrison. Let's go and check the defense first."
As soon as Mi Longtao's ship docked, the deputy company commander who stayed here brought him shocking news.
Bei Wei is coming to Fengchuan!
It’s not uncommon for Fengchuan County to have elders in this place. The joint logistics, navy, general reconnaissance bureau, intelligence bureau... there is a constant flow. Some are passing by temporarily, some are here to inspect, some are here specifically to perform a certain task, and some have been working locally.
——For example, the veterans of the health clinic take turns to work at the field hospital in Fengchuan County.
As the security commander of the Guangdong Region and the commander-in-chief of the Guangdong Region of the National Army, Bei Wei has been here more than once to coordinate the security mechanism of the occupied area. After the Yao Rebellion and the full-scale uprising of bandits along the Yangtze River, he came here more often.
.
But the visit of the elders this time was quite different. The deputy company commander said that in addition to Bei Wei, there were seven or eight elders who came with him, some in military uniforms and some in civilian clothes.
"...The leaders came by gunboat at night, and upon arrival they moved directly into the headquarters. It seemed they didn't want anyone to notice their arrival," the deputy company commander said in a low voice.
"What instructions do the leaders have?" Mi Longtao asked quickly.
"Major General Bei Wei asked you to see him as soon as you come back."
"Okay, I'll go right away."
Mi Longtao and Li Shenggang arrived at the Chongqing Garrison Headquarters together. The area was very large, and several Eight Immortals tables were put together to form a map table. Bei Wei was standing next to the map at the moment, thinking about it. Besides him, there was also a veteran in civilian clothes - Mi Long.
Tao knows: This is Chief Xu of the Intelligence Bureau.
This Chief Xu is very mysterious. Sometimes he arrives quietly and then leaves quietly. Sometimes he is summoned to ask about some situations, and sometimes he holds meetings with soldiers, cadres and local people.
He seldom spoke, mainly listening to what everyone said. Then he asked various questions in a targeted manner. For some questions, Milongtao never thought of the use without him asking them. But he upheld the principle of "Don't ask questions that shouldn't be asked."
"Principle, never ask, just report according to his requirements.
Looking closer, he saw several reed mats spread out on the ground of the headquarters, and various weapons listed at the door. Mi Longtao could tell at a glance that these were the enemy's weapons they had captured in yesterday's battle, including a swarm of bees and wood.
There are cannons.
Investigating captured enemy weapons is Chief Xu's usual job, so Mi Longtao didn't find it too strange.
"Report—" Mi Longtao had just shouted. Bei Wei had already seen them. He nodded slightly and motioned for them to come over.
"Please report yesterday's battle situation first." Bei Wei said, "Let's start from the beginning."
"The earliest situation occurred during the ferry flight of the Wuzhou Integrated Squadron. It would be more appropriate to ask Lieutenant Zhu to report first." Mi Longtao said.
Bei Wei nodded and turned his attention to Zhu Si.
Zhu Si saluted neatly and began to report on the battle situation since leaving Wuzhou City. He had served as a soldier in the garrison camp for many years, and had close contact with many elders while on duty, so he was not at all like ordinary naturalized civilian soldiers.
The veteran's nervousness and restraint not only spoke fluently, but also made the report concise and concise, focusing on the key points. Bei Wei was very satisfied after hearing this.
"That's a good report," Bei Wei looked at the National Army lieutenant standing upright in front of him, "You speak English very well, where did you learn it?"
"Reporting to Comrade Major General, we are at the Lingao Security Camp!"
Bei Wei thought to himself that it was no wonder that his military appearance and conduct were so standard! The report just now won his favor. He also asked him what year he was a soldier and his resume after joining the army. It was with regret that he had less combat experience.
!
However, judging from the report just now, his on-the-spot command was not bad. Moreover, Mi Longtao did not show an "otherwise" expression when he reported. Perhaps it should be said that he still showed "approval".
It seems that he is a talent that can be made. Bei Wei thought to himself. However, he still has too little experience. Entrusting him with the post of captain of the Wuzhou Brigade is indeed a bit too radical. This bandit suppression operation can fully train him.
Next, he basically strengthened his determination to form a mobile detachment with Mi Longtao's troops participating in the battle yesterday as the core.
Then Mi Longtao and Li Shenggang reported yesterday's battle situation and the conditions along the way one by one. They also marked the locations of relevant battles on the glass panels on the map.
"It seems that the enemy is indeed making big moves in Yunan County." Bei Wei said to Xu Xu.
The intelligence that the bandits were going to "make big trouble" in Yunan County was sent out by Li. Of course, he did not have spies lurking among the bandits, officers and soldiers, or the Yao village. This conclusion was mainly based on the collected relevant battle reports, prisoners' confessions and
Traces of enemy activities.
"The bandits you encountered are very capable." Xu Xu pointed at the various weapons on the reed mat. "These are not weapons that the bandits can afford. The officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty can only do this!"
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Next update: Volume 7 - Guangzhou Governance Chapter 370