Speaking of this, He Sanliang paused and said: "Commander, since it is a process that must be experienced, my opinion is that since you have to go through it sooner or later, it is much better to experience it early than later." The earlier it is experienced, the faster the troops will mature. There is no need to worry about whether our troops can fight a tough battle. ”

"But a tough battle does not necessarily mean a battle to the death, let alone a fight to pull it down. An army must not only be able to advance and attack, but also retreat and defend. If we will only fight to the death, then we will suffer. Especially against an opponent like the Japanese army, who is good at detours and infiltration, and has an absolute advantage in firepower. ”

"If we were only facing a puppet army, we would have fought out of the mountain to liberate Changzhi City a long time ago. But Commander, we still have to face the Japanese army after all. Since the July 7 Incident, I have been dealing with the Japanese army for so many years. I think that although the Japanese army is a beast army, its offensive and defensive tactics have a lot for us to learn from, and even learn from. ”

"Regiment commander, our squad and platoon tactics are subject to firepower limitations, and they are still relatively backward. The division of labor in the tactical group was not clear, the command ability of the squad leader was relatively poor, and most of the squad leaders could not understand the flag language. This is subject to the overall cultural literacy of our troops, and it is also a helpless thing. ”

"The squad leader is the head of the army, and he is also the group of people who suffer the most casualties on the battlefield. No matter how much training you train the day after tomorrow, you may not be able to catch up with the consumption of a big war. In fact, the regiment commander, the soldier before you was the squad leader, the squad leader was the platoon leader, and the platoon commander was the company commander. But the inherent disadvantage is destined to take a long process. ”

"Cadres at all levels, even at the regimental level, lack experience in defensive warfare, and the level of fortification construction is extremely low. This can be seen from the level of fortifications built by the 3rd Battalion at Qiaokou. After all, this is related to the tactics we paid attention to before, and if you can't, you can fight, and you can leave. ”

"Although we have been trying to change this, it is not very effective at the moment. After all, we have always been mainly engaged in sports warfare, and we have not had much experience in this kind of defensive warfare. This has directly caused our troops to be good at rushing and raiding operations. ”

"In offensive and defensive operations, there are not many means that can be used, and it can even be said that they are quite conservative. But the regiment commander, who can guarantee that he will not fight a defensive war for the rest of his life? Who can guarantee that in every battle, only meat will be eaten and not bones will be gnawed? Offensive and defensive, we are still far away. ”

"In large-scale operations, there are troops responsible for the offensive and troops responsible for the defense. Once the military region wants to assemble its troops and launch a large-scale operation, the task assigned to our regiment is defense. How can we fight this kind of battle, and can we successfully complete the tasks assigned to us by our superiors? ”

"Regiment commander, we are now limited by equipment and firepower, and we can't afford to fight that kind of large corps for the time being. But sooner or later, our situation will change, and it will be too late to train now. Therefore, I believe that we should still adopt the principle of leading from point to point, but in the deployment of troops, we should achieve the integration of point and area, and the defense system should coordinate with each other. ”

"With a certain reserve in the regiment, the units adopted the tactics of mobile defense and mobile warfare. At the same time, it is necessary to effectively combine the concentration of forces with the dispersion of guerrilla warfare. Give full play to the strengths of our mountain warfare, and fight in Qiaokou instead of fighting to the death. ”

"Commander, my words are definitely not alarmist. The devil's sharpness is now declining quite rapidly, and the troops that have changed their defenses have no way out, and in terms of weapons and equipment or the quality of soldiers, they are almost as good as the other. The 69th Division that was transferred to Shanxi this time was far inferior to the previous 36th Division in terms of mental outlook, discipline, and even weaponry. ”

"And judging from some details, the devil is now more reliant on fighting to feed the war. It was already December last year, and the Japanese troops stationed in the southeast part of Shanxi Province had not even changed into winter clothes. This is in addition to the transportation difficulties caused by the transportation of supply lines and the repeated raids of our various troops. I'm afraid that there may also be some problems with their own supply. ”

"Although we can only stay in the Taihang Mountains for the time being, we can't just sit here and watch the sky. Regiment commander, among these changes in the Japanese army, haven't you tasted some other things? If one day the situation changes and the military region organizes a major campaign, will our troops be able to effectively complete the tasks assigned by their superiors? ”

After He Sanliang's words, Li Ziyuan glanced at the right-hand man beside him. He Sanliang's last words, Li Ziyuan is naturally very clear. Because according to the history in Li Ziyuan's memory, the Japanese army will surrender unconditionally in two years at most. At present, with the extension of the Japanese front and the increasing size of the force, the supply of the Japanese army has long been overwhelmed.

This can be seen from the captured Japanese cans. Even just two years ago, the captured Japanese cans were still real beef. All kinds of field dry food can be described as rich in style, and the variety of canned food and biscuits is abundant. But the Japanese canned food captured at the moment, as soon as I opened it, I didn't know what it was, and the taste was the same as that wood slag.

The original rich field rations have long disappeared without a trace. Now the dispatch is sweeping, and almost all the supplies are relying on looting. The troops who participated in the sweep could eat whatever they grabbed and what they wanted. If you catch up with the bad luck, there are no people along the way, and you will basically have to go hungry.

Fortunately, the Japanese now control the whole of China, the region with the most abundant grain production. Relying on bayonets in hand, it was possible to plunder large quantities of grain from the occupied territories. Otherwise, if they were all barren areas like northern Shanxi and Chahar, almost the entire Japanese army invading China would have to go hungry.

The Japanese, who are already on the decline, are already in decline. Except for ammunition and uniforms, the rest of the supply has been completely dependent on the war to feed the war. This is not due to other reasons, but to Japan's current national strength. The small size of the country and the barren resources doomed the Japanese to congenital deficiencies.

The so-called industrialization of the Japanese is compared to that of China, which has almost no modern industry. However, its own production capacity, whether it is industry or agriculture, is still too far behind that of European and American powers. At present, although relying on the previous victory, it still controls a large part of the occupied territory, but the decline is inevitable.

This can be seen from the general decline in the quality of the newly transferred soldiers of the 69th Division, and the Japanese have now stretched to the end. But although he knew this, Li Ziyuan also bitterly knew that the current Japanese army was still not something that China's various armies could contend with.

Despite the declining level of the Japanese army, they will still have the upper hand over the weaker Chinese army as a whole for at least a year. This is the reality, although it is quite cruel, but after all, no one can change the reality. The gap in the overall strength of the two sides cannot be bridged simply by relying on the quality of the troops alone.

He Sanliang has a certain strategic vision, which Li Ziyuan is clear. But He Sanliang actually looked at it so long-term, but Li Ziyuan didn't expect it. I came from a few decades later, even though I didn't experience this history at the time. But now, Li Ziyuan has a very deep understanding of this history.

But since following the Eighth Route Army to cross the Yellow River eastward, Li Ziyuan truly realized the gap between the Chinese and Japanese armies. Even though the quality of the old Red Army units was quite high, they were still very different from the Japanese army. Even if it is not a gap in equipment, the difference between the quality of individual soldiers and the ability of commanders is quite far behind.

At present, although the overall quality of the Japanese army is declining, it still surpasses the Chinese army to a certain extent. This is the helpless reality, the ideal is very full, but the reality is also cruel. He Sanliang's vision is very far, but in a short period of time, the Eighth Route Army, at least the Eighth Route Army in Taihang Mountain, does not have the ability to launch large-scale operations.

This is not only determined by the quality of the individual soldiers of the two sides and the ability of commanders at all levels, but also by the disparity in all aspects. Let a unit that does not even have a few bullets go to fight against the Japanese army that still has the upper hand at the moment, it is obviously idle for a long time.

Although the Eighth Route Army was humble and studious, it even did not hesitate to take the enemy as a teacher and comprehensively learn the white-knuckle tactics of the Japanese army. In the event of an extreme shortage of ammunition, the combat effectiveness of the troops should be maintained in close combat as much as possible. But the Japanese are good at white-knuckle tactics, but that doesn't mean that he will have nothing to do with you to play white-knuckle combat.

The Japanese put a lot of effort into white-knuckle warfare, and that was to cultivate their so-called bushido spirit. and to maintain a basic tactical capability and literacy that can inflict lethal damage on the enemy when the ammunition is depleted. But this does not mean that the Japanese army will play a white-knuckle battle with you when the ammunition supply is sufficient and the firepower is overwhelmingly superior.

When the firepower was absolutely superior, the Japanese army did not mind playing the tactics of sea of fire. When they can solve problems with shells, they will never use other means. At present, the Eighth Route Army is far from being able to confront the Japanese army head-on. Therefore, there are some things that He Sanliang is right to think of, but at the moment it is still a little too long-term.

However, there is one thing He Sanliang is not wrong about, the troops will have to face this situation sooner or later. So, it's not necessarily a bad thing to have some things in touch early. Thinking of this, Li Ziyuan, who was finally persuaded by He Sanliang, turned to He Sanliang and said, "Old He, this matter will be done according to what you said." Inside Qiaokou, only one reinforced platoon was placed, and the focus was still on the mountains on the periphery of Qiaokou. ”

"As for how to defend the whole regiment and how to adjust it this time, why should you come up with a plan as soon as possible. I'll let Lao Dong cooperate with you. But Lao He, when you adjust, you must pay attention to one point. That is, the troops should not be stationed in the mountains for a long time, and regular rotation and adjustment should be considered to avoid fatigue of the troops. ”

"In addition, all three battalions are to maintain a certain mobile emergency response force. Each company must maintain a reinforcement squad. For each battalion, a reinforced platoon must be ensured. In the regiment, it is necessary to master a reinforced company. The training of the troops should also be strengthened, and you are an expert in defensive warfare. ”

"In the training of defense tactics in the troops, you have to work hard. Don't be afraid to increase the amount of training in the troops, and don't look at training for war. In addition, during the period of relocation and strengthening of the defenses of the whole regiment, the activities of self-help through production must not be delayed. In the first autumn, it is necessary to ensure that the troops are self-sufficient in some of their food, and that all the vegetables that will be wintered this year will be 100 percent self-sufficient. ”

"We must reduce the burden on the common people as much as possible, and at the same time ensure the supply of the troops. In short, in a word, training cannot be delayed, and combat readiness cannot be delayed. However, production self-help cannot be delayed. Of course, this is a bit too heavy for the troops. It is not only a test of physical strength, but also a test of mental willpower. ”