The early winter rain finally stopped, and the sun peeked out of the clouds and shone brightly on the earth. Although the wind is still very cold, at least it makes people feel a lot warmer inside. Even with bright sunlight, the dense forests of North America provide much of the shade. Of course, the advantage of having more forests is that it makes it very easy for the troops to obtain firewood. The motorized troops paused for a moment by a wood, and everyone gathered around the marching kitchens to begin eating.

The meals are very simple, and they come and go as canned. The head of the regiment, Ma Xiaoming, has a small round face, which was originally quite white, but after arriving in North America, it became even whiter. Eating canned luncheon meat based on pork, Qi Rui, the political commissar of the regiment, finally had a ruddy feeling on his face after eating. Now there is no ethnic division in China, but the political censorship is much stricter, and Qi Rui actually knows that Ma Xiaoming's parents are Muslims. And Ma Xiaoming swallowed a mouthful of hot luncheon meat without care, and said while chewing: "The marching speed has increased from 30 kilometers to 40 kilometers in the past few days. ”

If it was in the Asian part of the Republic of China, the motorized infantry could run more than 100 kilometers on the highway in one day, or 200 kilometers through gritting their teeth. However, this is North America, and the dirt roads trodden by people and animals are good. The marching distance has been increased from 30 kilometers to 40 kilometers every day, and the combat efficiency has increased by more than 30 percent. By the numbers, that's a pretty big improvement. Judging by the reaction of the fighters, they got rid of those disgusting dirty jobs, and everyone's mood changed in a better direction.

"A thousand Koreans is not enough. I have to get 450,000 yuan. Qi Rui said slowly.

"Do you still want to go to the Mexican border?" Ma Xiaoming immediately responded to Qi Rui's statement.

"Do you think we have what it takes to get to the Mexican border?" Qi Rui asked rhetorically.

"Why not?" Without waiting for Ma Xiaoming to speak, Major Wu Chaoyang, the commander of the cavalry battalion, came over and asked. There is no shortage of children of high-ranking soldiers in the North American theater, Wu Chaoyang is Wu Liao's nephew, and the cavalry battalion commander is generally considered to have a higher actual status than the infantry battalion commander. Looking at this high-ranking official's son, Ma Xiaoming temporarily shut up.

Ma Xiaoming was silent, Qi Rui didn't want to talk too much, the motorized regiment is a new thing, and it is a representative of the sudden rise in the army. Trucks, which were originally thought to be logistics troops, have come together to become the spearhead of the attack with stubbornness, and each branch of the military has its own opinion on this. On the whole, the opinions of the infantry are greater, and the opinions of the cavalry are greater. Wu Chaoyang himself was the commander of the cavalry battalion, and his attitude was highly consistent with that of the cavalry faction.

Looking at the expressions of the two chiefs, Wu Chaoyang probably knew what they were thinking. Wu Chaoyang was a little embarrassed and dared to laugh: "Regiment leader, political commissar." I said something unpleasant the other day, and I apologize to the two chiefs. Running down these days, I must admit that motorized infantry is no worse than cavalry most of the time. ”

"Humph!" Ma Xiaoming snorted. This Major Wu Chaoyang said that the real meaning of "most of the time" refers to the fact that cavalry is still stronger than motorized infantry in a small part of the time. Ma Xiaoming didn't bother to refute, after all, he was the one who had heard Governor Wei Ze speak at the Nanjing report meeting, and the Governor's thoughtfulness had reached a level that people like Wu Chaoyang could not understand. It's just that the three-wheeled motorcycles have not yet been delivered to the battlefield, and the cavalry still has a lot of room to show.

Seeing that Ma Xiaoming didn't really accept his "apology", Wu Chaoyang softened his attitude even more, and he said a little sneeringly: "Commander Ma, the cavalry troops can still withstand it, but the horses can't stand it." Can I let the horses ride in the car? ”

"Of course you can't stand the way you let the horses run like that." Ma Xiaoming replied a little unhappily. The cavalry units were eager to show their prestige as the most mobile troops, and over-mobility was not uncommon, especially in the first few days. Compared to the cavalry, the motorized infantry looked conservative and relied heavily on the main road in this strange land. Motorized infantry initially marched thirty kilometers a day, and horses generally ran much more than that. By the time the motorized infantry had marched 40 kilometers, the horses showed signs of fatigue. I can't see the kind of vigor from the early days, so I can only honestly follow the motorized troops and march forward.

"I think we should rest for a few days." Qi Rui is not as unhappy as Ma Xiaoming, although the unhappiness caused by being despised in his heart may not be less than Ma Xiaoming. But Qi Rui found that he was much more patient than before, and the way he looked at problems began to change. Since everyone is tired, it would be good to rest.

"I agree with the commissar." Wu Chaoyang said immediately.

Ma Xiaoming frowned slightly, he didn't object to a day or two of rest, but he was always a little unrelieved of the arrogance of the cavalry in his heart. Before he could be freed from this uncomfortable state, he heard Qi Rui say, "Let's talk to Commander Wu about this." ”

During this period of time, not only Qi Rui and others were promoted, but the commander of the Wu division of Qi Rui's unit also became the commander of Wu. Theoretically, Qi Rui will return to the 23rd Army where Commander Wu is located to continue serving after completing the intermediate class training. Motorized infantry appeared, and motorized infantry units were urgently formed in North America. Judging from Qi Rui's regiment alone, they got a cavalry battalion of the 23rd Army and turned it into a reinforced regiment. From the perspective of the 23rd Army, Qi Rui's regiment is not subordinate to the 23rd Army, but an independent regiment. So the 23rd Army itself turned into an army reinforced by an independent regiment.

There are at least 9 regimental-level units in an army, and the position of a motorized rifle regiment is slightly awkward. Although the army commander can completely dismiss the regimental commander, the division commanders and the motorized infantry regiment designated as the vanguard are also in the position of direct command of the military headquarters. Looking at the two young lieutenant colonels and their group of division commanders "on an equal footing", the expressions of the three division commanders were relatively rich.

Listening to Qi Rui's suggestion to ask the whole army to rest and recuperate, Commander Wu's face became solemn. The division commanders didn't dare to speak immediately, they all knew that Commander Wu was an old subordinate of Lieutenant General Wu Liao, and he was always more attentive in taking care of Wu Liao's family. The cavalry battalion had been marching in the winter drizzle for eight or nine days, and although it was unpleasant for the division commanders to complain now, they really didn't think there was anything wrong with it. The cavalry battalion was bitter, and the infantry division was also a little unbearable. Even if you don't have to fight, marching more than 30 kilometers a day is not an easy job to stick to. What's more, this is not the inner line of the people's dynasty, but on the enemy's territory.

"You're almost on the Florida border, right?" Commander Wu saw that the division commanders didn't speak, so he could only ask first.

"At this rate, we can arrive the day after tomorrow at the latest." Qi Rui replied.

"We were ordered to prepare for defensive operations when we arrived at the Florida border. Can't the cavalry troops hold out for a while? Commander Wu came up with a more common solution.

"Put heavy troops on the border line?" Qi Rui is also reflecting these days, if there are mobile troops, there is no need to lay down heavy troops on the front line. If you really place heavy troops, it is better to simply cooperate with the army and navy and take San Francisco. If the West Coast of the United States can be completely closed, the direction of China's advance will become very simple, from west to east, and the entire strategic situation will also change dramatically.

"What does Political Commissar Qi think?" Commander Wu asked.

"I ......" Qi Rui didn't think it was necessary to use the so-called state border as the boundary, and if he could, he even thought it would be good not to get too close to the state border. At this time, the two choices are either to eliminate the living forces of the United States as soon as possible, or to quickly complete the control of the plains, sweep all the American villages and towns in the control area, and control these areas with Chinese forces, so as to prepare for a long-term war in the future. But he is just a regimental political commissar, and it is obviously very inappropriate for the army commander to tell such a long and chaotic story. Soldiers must first obey discipline and obey orders. This is not a good time for Qi Rui to speak. So many division commanders are looking at this regimental political commissar with fierce eyes.

Seeing that Qi Rui wanted to speak and stopped, Commander Wu smiled and said, "Of course you have to carry out the order." However, I would like to hear what the comrades on the front line think about the strategic situation in the future. It doesn't hurt to say it bluntly, anyway, it is the military department that makes the decision. The military headquarters will not shift the responsibility to a regimental headquarters. ”

When the division commanders heard this, they couldn't help but laugh a few times. It is also a good blow to let such a political commissar of the regiment who is in the limelight understand that it is not his turn to make a decision at all. And the division commanders really wanted to see what this young officer was capable of.

Now that the commander has drawn the scope, Qi Rui has no worries. "The problem with the United States at the moment is that we have not been able to mobilize quickly, and we have not been able to face the regular American army," he said frankly. The militia groups in the American states have also not been able to rally to fight us. But in the coming days, we will face more and more enemies. How to control these areas, how to thoroughly clean up the local people in the United States, is the priority for the future. When I was in the military academy, I studied the Battle of Foshan, and the key to that battle was indeed the fierce battle outside the city of Foshan. But in the whole battle layout, even if the British defeated one of our troops head-on, the next result was only worse. They will be harassed and ambushed by our army all the time. and even completely cut off the water passage of the British army. At that time, the British seemed to win one victory, but in reality they would only lose it all. If you can't fight a war, you can't turn around and leave, which can prove that the British side is very discerning. ”

The political commissar of a regiment actually raised the war to a strategic level, and the division commanders couldn't help but frown. They were not in a happy mood, and the reason for this unhappiness was that Qi Rui told the truth. The commander of the army drove straight in, and occupied many farms and other strongholds along the road, and it was obvious that the situation was very advantageous. However, the huge figure of the enemy was not revealed, and the United States has a population of more than 50 million, and it is not difficult to defeat the United States once or twice. The hard thing is to eliminate the United States. If you want to eliminate the United States, you have to eliminate the American population. As Qi Rui cites the example of the Battle of Foshan, even though the British defeated Wu Liao's troops head-on and attacked the city of Foshan. What awaits them is more Liberation Army and the people of Guangdong who have been gradually mobilized. The moment the offensive and defensive momentum changes, it will be difficult for the side with inferior forces to turn the tables.

In the vast land of North America, more than 30,000 people of the 23rd Army of the Liberation Army are undoubtedly the side that is at an absolute disadvantage in terms of troops.