Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled and nodded around. He breathed a sigh of relief, took a sip of tea and said:
"At least in the current Ming Dynasty, the question of whether to expedition to the north can indeed be decided by us in this hall. In this hall, there are His Majesty, the chief ministers, all the cabinet ministers, and the highest military chief. For Britain and the United States
For Ming Dynasty, there is still one parliament left, but for Ming Dynasty, everyone has already arrived."
"What's more, even if Parliament is really needed to decide whether to go to war, Parliament may not necessarily reject war. A very important reason why many issues are not held to referendums but to be voted on by Parliament is that the people are doing
When making decisions, they are often influenced by various personal emotions and cannot be as rational as politicians. Therefore, when it comes to such important issues of national life and death, they must be decided by the parliament and not by direct voting by the people.
Decision. Although the parliament is also elected by the people.
"For example, during our Northern Expedition, if we had just won the battle to defend Nanjing and the whole country was excited, and asked the people to vote to decide whether to proceed with the Northern Expedition, then nine times out of ten the vote would result in a direct Northern Expedition. But if we have a mature parliament,
Let the congressmen vote whether to make the Northern Expedition immediately. The result is likely to be not to make the Northern Expedition, but to continue as soon as possible.
We retreated and consolidated the Yangtze River defense line. Why? Because at that time, although we smashed Pukou to pieces and captured hundreds of thousands of Qing troops, it seemed that we had won a glorious victory, but our military strength was no longer able to attack northward. And
At that time, the absolute advantage of the Qing army was still there... It was difficult for the people to see this clearly, but the congressmen could definitely see it clearly.
"But on the other hand, if we hold another referendum today to vote on whether to conduct the Northern Expedition, then it is very likely that as Mr. Xu said, the people will not support the war. Why? Because half a year has passed, and the enthusiasm at that time has calmed down. And we
We have always been in a wartime economy, and factories have not been operating at full capacity.
With the end of the war, the depressed economy and unemployment situation before the war were wiped out. Our people's pockets are full, we can afford good food, wear good clothes, and we can say that we live a very happy life. In this case
, it is not easy for them to vote to end this comfortable life and face bombs and terror again.
"But again, if we have a mature parliament and the members vote on whether to go to the Northern Expedition, it will be difficult to say. Because in the past six months, the situation between the two sides has changed a lot. First of all, we have a piece of
A stable oil base. Secondly, our Yangtze River defense line has been tested in actual combat and exposed many mistakes.
Problems that I didn’t know about have been improved in the past six months. It can be said that the improvement of the Yangtze River Defense Line in the past six months is equivalent to that of the past ten years. Today’s Yangtze River Defense Line’s protection intensity has increased by 45% compared with half a year ago.
50%... This data was provided by General Cao Mingqin, commander of the eastern section of the Yangtze River Defense Line. Mr. Cao, is that true?"
Xiang Xiaoqiang turned to Cao Mingqin and asked with a smile. Cao Mingqin smiled, nodded and said:
"That's right. But there is one thing to note, that is, the middle section of the Yangtze River defense line, that is, the section from Wuhan to Xiangfan, has been converted into a land defense line, so it is still a relatively weak link. This section does not rely on the Yangtze River like the eastern section of the defense line.
It’s not like the Western Section Defense Line either.
That relies on high mountains and ridges... It is more than 200 kilometers long, just flat land, purely relying on acquired fortifications. But this is only temporary. In the past six months, the Ministry of War has continued to increase investment, and it is estimated that it will take another four to six months.
It will be able to reach the protection level of the eastern section."
…
Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled and nodded to Commander Cao to thank him, then turned around and continued:
"...That means that in four to six months, our Yangtze River defense line will be truly impregnable... In the past, both the Ming and the Qing had a common concept, that is, the Qing Dynasty was on the offensive and the Ming Dynasty was on the defensive. Only the Qing Dynasty could
If the Ming army attacks, it is impossible for the Ming army to attack. But four to six months later, the situation will be completely opposite: only the Ming army can attack, and it is impossible for the Qing army to attack. From a military point of view, we have no worries.
"In addition to the Yangtze River Defense Line, our army has also made a qualitative leap in the past six months. Our aircraft production has been greatly increased every month. Regardless of the number of aircraft installed or the training quality of pilots, it has formed a positive impact on the Manchu and Qing Air Forces.
overwhelming advantage. And every day, our fighters and bombers continue to
They are constantly hauled out of the assembly plant and put into force. In the aviation school, our reserve pilots are constantly expanding, there are enough coaches, enough training aircraft, enough fuel, and the students have enough training hours every day. Even if a war starts now,
Our Army Aviation can completely wipe out Qing aircraft from the sky in the first round.
"Well, when it comes to this, some people may say that I am a 'Douhetist'. I only know about airplanes. It seems that the war will be won with airplanes. In fact, I am not a Douhetist. The label of a Douhetist is
: Believes that air power can replace ground power and the war can be won by relying solely on the air force
.But I don’t have such a ‘label’. Like everyone else, I believe that a war cannot be won by air power alone, but must rely on actual capture by ground troops. But one thing is unquestionable, that is, although air power cannot fight independently
Winning the war can greatly help the ground troops win the war.
"Once we have control of the air on the battlefield, the opponent's army is basically at the mercy of others. The degree of misery depends on the investment of our aircraft. In addition to directly killing the opponent's officers and soldiers, on the vast North China battlefield,
The greater role of air supremacy was to delay the mobilization of the Qing army.
This 'Fortress' exercise also confirmed that repeated air strikes by a few aircraft in the sky can seriously slow down the march of an entire division on the ground. If more aircraft are invested, the division can be completely stopped in place.
The Qing army basically marched on foot, making it easier for aircraft to harass them.
"This is compared to the motorized infantry division. The motorized infantry division can pay a certain amount of casualties and continue to drive despite air attacks. And because the soldiers are sitting in military vehicles with canvas masks, they are easier to bear psychologically. The walking formation
It's different, every time a plane appears in the sky
, everyone must evacuate to both sides of the road and lie down to take cover. If we repeatedly carry out air strikes, they will have to take cover repeatedly. If they do not take cover, they will suffer casualties from bombs and strafing. If you do this a few times, the morale of the troops will be stronger.
It will also drop to the lowest point. This is air supremacy.
"There are also cars. Our monthly car production has now reached 4,000 vehicles. After the Army's order for 35,000 military vehicles is placed, our monthly car production is expected to exceed 5,000 vehicles within two months. This is not just cars.
This represents our army’s battlefield mobility and logistical follow-up capabilities. You can’t just see how much the Qing army’s total strength is compared to our army’s.
times, we should also see that our army's mobility is several times that of the Qing army. To use a more popular analogy, today's advantage of motorized infantry divisions over traditional infantry divisions is like the advantage of cavalry over infantry in the past. And today's advantage
It will be even bigger. Because even if our soldiers get out of the car, our combat effectiveness, fighting will, weapons and equipment, and weapon quality are still several times theirs.
"There are also tanks. The Qing army currently has more tanks than us, and its monthly output is still higher than ours. There is no need to deny this. This is because the Qing Dynasty has more tank factories than us. But this situation will not last long.
On the one hand, we are also expanding the tank factory. On the other hand, the cost of producing a tank in Beiqing with the same number of working hours is three to four times that of ours. Although their costs are much lower than ours, their engineers' salary is only
Equivalent to our ordinary workers, but still.
"We all know the reason: the cost is low and we don't have to be greedy. In fact, it's not just tanks, it's all planes, cars, cannons, guns and ammunition. The simple reason is that for the same amount of money, they can only build one, but we can
Build three. And we have more money than they do. So at the rate of several hundred vehicles per month for both parties, we may surpass them in quantity within the year.
"Everyone also knows that the Northern Qing Dynasty was decadent, and the army was the hardest hit area. In the Northern Qing Dynasty, the people across the country tightened their belts to support the army, and as a result, 70 to 80 percent of it went into the pockets of officials at all levels.
.And even if the country is about to be destroyed, there is no way it can become incorruptible.
Yes. I can say this, even if our tanks hit the city of Beijing, the officials in the city will still not be thinking about how to save the Qing Empire, but how to make the last money for themselves. Not to mention Guangwu,
Even the reincarnations of Kangxi and Yongzheng will be powerless."
…
After saying this, Xiang Xiaoqiang's throat almost started to smoke. He stopped and picked up the cup to drink water. When he paused, the hall was very quiet. No minister seized the opportunity to refute immediately. Many people,
Especially the civil servants in the cabinet were savoring what he said. What Xiang Xiaoqiang said, some
The content ministers know it, and some content ministers don’t know it. But saying it all in one breath now has a certain effect on everyone. Of course, these cabinet ministers are old men who have been playing politics for half their lives, and they will not give in to the content ministers.
Xiaoqiang was persuaded by his words. But at least it had some effect.
Xiang Xiaoqiang put down his cup and saw that no one wanted to speak for a while, so he struck while the iron was hot. He turned to the fourteen girls beside him and nodded, and then said to everyone:
"My lords, today is a meeting of the highest military and political officials, but with your Majesty's approval, Princess Liaoyang is also here to participate. Princess Liaoyang currently serves as the deputy of the security team in the People's Guard, responsible for the collection and processing of intelligence on the Northern Qing Dynasty. Needless to say,
Princess Liaoyang was originally the highest official in Niangan of the Northern Qing Dynasty. For reasons known to everyone, she temporarily took up residence in the Ming Dynasty and helped us resist the tyrant Guangwu and worked hard to liberate the people under her rule.
"Because of Princess Liaoyang's original position in the Northern Qing Dynasty, her understanding of the Northern Qing Dynasty and the Northern Qing army is better than all of us in the Ming Dynasty, even better than the Emperor of the Northern Qing Dynasty. Therefore, her efficiency in collecting intelligence about the Northern Qing Dynasty is obvious to all.
The accuracy of the analytical intelligence is also trustworthy. You must be willing to hear the 'latest market price' of the current selling prices of various levels of official ranks in the Qing army. There is no better explanation of the Qing army's combat effectiveness than this."
The ministers whispered to each other and glanced at Fourteen Gege, with some suspicion, some contempt, some sympathy, and some gentleness in their eyes. Regarding the situation of the Northern Qing government's selling of officials and titles, the ministers were relatively familiar with it. However, as for the members of the Northern Qing army,
Many people know very little about the situation of selling official positions and getting titles. Because the army is a relatively closed system, it is not as easy to collect intelligence as the officialdom. And the South
Even if the Ming agents return intelligence, the information about the army is classified at a higher level than ordinary government officials, and it is not easy to spread to the press. Even if there are relevant reports in Nanming newspapers, they are mostly one-sided, without a system and detailed "
"Overall Report". Xiang Xiaoqiang moved Princess Liaoyang out today. It seems that in order to persuade the cabinet to approve the Northern Expedition, they are preparing to show off some "big things".