An armored brigade has three armored regiments (under the jurisdiction of a tank company and an infantry regiment), an armored infantry regiment, an artillery regiment, an engineer regiment, a brigade headquarters, and also directly under the jurisdiction of reconnaissance battalions, repair battalions, transport battalions, etc., and the total number of the brigade is about 5,000 to 6,000. Pen % fun % Pavilion www.biquge.info

Of course, the General Staff Headquarters is also in the stage of exploring the establishment of armored troops, and the staff officers have not fully understood and pondered the power and methods of using tanks and armored vehicles.

But relative to other countries, China is already leading the way in this area of research. In Xi'an, with the increase in the number of tanks and armored vehicles, the exercises will be very frequent, and the drills of various new subjects will make the establishment of armored units more rational and effective.

"Have you ever seen this tank?" Song Jiaoren asked curiously: "Elder Wen Qiang said how powerful it is, attacking the city and pulling out the village is like walking on the ground, I just saw the photos and was very interested in it." ”

"I'm just like you." Wu Luzhen said with a smile: "But according to the report of the team sent by the General Staff Headquarters, the tank is indeed powerful. Think about it, bullets can't penetrate it, ordinary shells won't help it, and the psychological impact on the enemy is very great. In fact, there is no need to worry, at the end of the year, at the latest at the beginning of next year, there will be armored forces in the Beijing Military Region, and then let's see what happens! ”

"That's all there is to it." Song Jiaoren said helplessly: "This year, the state finances have just improved a little, but they have to spend such a large amount of money, it really seems that Wen Qiang has to raise some more." ”

"What is Wen Qiang going to do?" Wu Luzhen frowned and asked, "Is it related to the German delegation that is coming soon?" ”

Song Jiaoren nodded and said, "Although we all want to keep our lead, it will not be easy. Wen Qiang is right, only innovation and development are the right way. Otherwise, unless you hide something new from yourself, but as long as you take it out and use it, sooner or later someone will learn it. The industrial and technological capabilities of other countries surpass ours, and it is basically impossible to keep it secret. ”

"Therefore, we simply developed and developed together." Wu Luzhen said: "Take advantage of the temporary lead of new things, sell them at a good price, and use other people's money to develop and grow." ”

"That's right." Song Jiaoren nodded and said, "Of course, Wen Qiang has other ideas. Looking at the current international situation, it seems that war between the Central Powers and the Entente is inevitable, and it is only a matter of time. If a big war breaks out, it is more appropriate for a weak country like China to stay out of the matter first. And the struggle between the great powers, no matter who wins or loses, will inevitably weaken their strength. Wen Qiang's meaning is that he wants these countries to fight fiercely and suffer greater losses, which is very beneficial to China. ”

Although it was 1913, a world war was on the verge of breaking out, as the iron-blooded Prime Minister Bismarck had predicted: the European powers would one day fight a European war for a few Balkan fools.

The first Balkan war did not result in satisfactory results for the parties involved. Serbia wanted to get an outlet to the Adriatic Sea, but it was not possible because of the strong opposition of Austria and Italy; Greece protested against Italy's partition of Zozé Kanisos; Bulgaria, in particular, had been involved in most of its military operations, but had lost Serbia to the territorial partition clause of the London Entente, and turned to Belgrade's old enemy Vienna for help and support.

Thus, less than a month after the ceasefire of the first Balkan war, Bulgaria launched an offensive against Serbia. Romania, Greece, Menegro and Turkey immediately supported Serbia by declaring war on Bulgaria, which at this time found itself in complete isolation. Austria-Hungary, on the other hand, was cautious about this and did not enter the war.

The Second Balkan War differed from the First Balkan War in that it was a dynastic war for territory, and behind it was the struggle of the great powers for hegemony in the Balkans.

The two equal blocs of power in the Allies and the Entente may seem like a good way to ensure stability in foreign affairs, but the apparent contradictions within the two alliances are becoming more and more acute.

Although China does not want to get involved in this world war, at least it will not rush into the war until it has enough benefits. But the growing tensions between the two military blocs are still affecting China, and they must make some choices in order to get more technical and financial support for the final pre-war sprint.

The United States and Germany, which one to choose, is also a matter of great thought. In the end, the Chinese government decided to apply for this huge amount of money from Germany. This is, of course, not for moral reasons, but for the needs of the national interest. For new military equipment, it is clear that Germany will be more interested than the United States, and the harder Germany fights in World War I, the better it will be for China.

In the grand scheme of things, all the great powers, including Germany, are enemies of China, and the more they weaken their strength, the better it will be for China's development. Of course, the Chinese side will not show everything to the Germans, and there are some key things that will be left for last.

For China, although it is much better than it was in the past, at least it has not lost its rights due to large borrowing, but the funds needed for initial development are still not a problem that can be solved by self-reliance. Military spending is already very huge, and it is even more difficult to build armored forces.

This is different from building a pharmaceutical factory, with the incomparable trust in Chen Wenqiang, with the greed for the expected huge profits, and even as long as the wind is released, the people who want to get a piece of the pie are breaking their heads to fight. Strengthening the country's military strength is not a profitable thing to do, at least for the time being.

In mid-November 1913, Chen Wenqiang returned to Beijing.

By this time, the Second Balkan War had come to an end, Austria-Hungary-backed Bulgaria had suffered a crushing defeat, and the danger of war seemed to have vanished once again. But Chen Wenqiang knew that the first world war in history was about to break out. Although it is not known whether history will be repeated, sooner or later the confrontation between the two major military blocs will occur, which is determined by the deep contradictions between imperialism.

Beijing is still Beijing, but the changes are obvious. The sedan chairs are no longer visible, and the number of cars has increased, all of which are produced by Sino-US and Sino-German joint venture factories. In the constant sound of the horn, people no longer stare at it with amazement, but as if nothing happened.

The people who had lived in a calm environment for two or three years had regained a lot of vitality, and the original numb and timid expressions on their faces were less, and they straightened their backs, and dared to look directly at the patrolmen on the road, and even theorized a few words.

Without the suppression of foreign powers, without the exploitation of unequal treaties, as long as the government is efficient, China's development should be faster. Chen Wenqiang closed the curtains and closed his eyes slightly.

War, the common people do not know that this monster is close at hand, and they enjoy the simple, immediate peace and happiness. But in order to ensure the longevity of this peace and happiness, China must truly rise through war, and only by completely defeating the most vicious enemy of the East can China have no worries at all.

The car drove into Zhongnanhai, and Chen Wenqiang came directly to the president's office. Song Jiaoren, who had already been informed by the guards at the door, sent a secretary to greet him at the door.

As they spoke, the two had already walked into the president's office. The furnishings of the house were still so simple and clean that they hadn't even been moved.

Song Jiaoren walked out of the big desk and hugged Chen Wenqiang warmly, Chen Wenqiang keenly noticed that there were a few strands of gray hair on his sideburns, and couldn't help but sigh: "Blunt beginning, early blooming hair, makes people feel old!" ”

Hehe, Song Jiaoren smiled, touched his sideburns and said, "It's just a few gray hairs, it's still early to talk about old age!" Look at you, it's still the same. ”

"It hasn't changed much, but my bag is empty." Chen Wenqiang smiled bitterly and sat down on the sofa, spreading his hands, "Not only did the money run out, but I also borrowed a lot of debt, President, you have to save me!" ”

Song Jiaoren said helplessly: "Look at your lazy appearance, and you are not afraid of making others laugh." ”

"Jokes are jokes, borrow some money to spend, otherwise I won't even have money for my son's milk powder." Chen Wenqiang rolled his eyes and said disapprerovingly.

"Son, you, when did you have it? Don't say a word. Song Jiaoren was stunned, then clapped his hands and said with a smile: "This is a happy event, I paid for the milk powder." ”

"Okay, you save money, in two months, it is estimated that you should climb out." Chen Wenqiang said seriously.

"It turned out to be two months to wait." Song Jiaoren was a little regretful, sat down and looked at Chen Wenqiang, and said for a long time: "Let's talk about it, now that the country has no money, what should I do?" ”

Chen Wenqiang took the coffee handed by the secretary, nodded with a smile, and said: "This is not accurate enough, the current use of expansionary deficit fiscal policy to speed up the construction of infrastructure is only a temporary fiscal policy adopted under specific conditions. Without money, what does a central bank do? What are bank reserves for? ”

"So, you're going to increase the amount of money?" Song Jiaoren asked suspiciously: "Are you still going to use the bank's foreign exchange reserves?" ”

Chen Wenqiang drank coffee, pondered for a while, and said: "I have carefully studied the financial statements with experts, and the reason why the central government has not received much money is because the provinces have built infrastructure and withheld most of it, which is also approved by the government, and we should have foreseen it." But it's important to note that the economy is also growing by a large margin. Therefore, the central bank will increase the amount of money appropriately, which will not cause an inflationary response. As for the foreign exchange reserves of banks, I think it's time to use them. I have all the plans put together here, and I would like to ask the President to take a look at them. ”

Song Jiaoren looked at the document lightly and did not speak for a long time. In this document, Chen Wenqiang analyzed the international situation in detail and held that the outbreak of the European war is not far off, and the prices of various industrial products will inevitably rise in price, and they will be in short supply.

In particular, when it comes to the military industry, such as various types of engines and radio equipment, these are not yet available to China or cannot be completely manufactured independently. Taking advantage of the fact that the European war has not yet broken out, Chen Wenqiang is ready to use bank reserves to purchase a large number of them in case of emergency. In addition, the document also mentions borrowing huge sums of money from the United States and Germany, some of which are quietly exchanged for gold on the international market, and some of which are added to the purchase funds.

In other words, not only will the borrowing of the United States and Germany become in-kind, but the central bank's foreign exchange reserves will also be sold out. It's a risk-averse move to avoid war, and whether you're pounding or pounding or dollar, China doesn't want it all, just gold and industrial products.

But to make this decision, it also requires strong determination. The war in the Balkans has been suspended for the time being, and the danger of war seems to have been lifted. If the European war does not break out in the short term, or if it does not break out, this kind of action will also pay a big price.

"Wen Qiang, will the European war really break out? And just in this year or two? Song Jiaoren asked suspiciously: "You know the risk of doing this, can we take some safe measures?" ”

Chen Wenqiang fell silent, yes, could he really be sure that the First World War would break out as expected? If not, how can he make up for this loss, is he a little overconfident? After all, history has changed, and he has a part to blame for that. He did this in a hurry, or he couldn't resist the temptation, and the treasure broke out in a short period of time in the first war, and the profit was huge.

"Wen Qiang, let's think about it again, we must be more thoughtful." Song Jiaoren said kindly.

Chen Wenqiang suddenly raised his head, looked at Song Jiaoren with very firm eyes, and said, "This plan must be implemented. Of course, it's a bit inappropriate to let central banks take risks. I'm going to use all my shares, and the patent rights to penicillin as collateral, and my credibility, to borrow money from a big consortium and fight for it. ”

"What is this called? It's like I'm scared. Song Jiaoren frowned and said unhappily: "I just want to make the plan more secure, there must always be a name for using reserves, right?" ”

Chen Wenqiang said with a smile: "Dull Chu, I didn't speak properly just now, I'm sorry, big president, I have a big belly, don't be surprised." ”

"I don't care!" Song Jiaoren waved his hand and said with a smile: "Don't be a big president, the big president's call, it sounds awkward, and it's also divided." I believe in your ability to make money, and when you mentioned penicillin just now, I thought of a good way......"

Chen Wenqiang touched his chin and groaned, and said: "It's not that I haven't thought about this method, but you know, those rich people not only injected capital into the pharmaceutical factory, but also lent me a huge amount of money as the fund for the production of tanks in the arsenal. They want to monopolize the production and sales of new drugs, but they don't want others to get a piece of the pie. ”

"Then inject the money into the arsenal and pump out the money you borrowed." Song Jiaoren suggested.

Chen Wenqiang shook his head and said: "The money I borrowed is still a small amount, forget it, let's think of other ways, for now, I will use foreign exchange reserves to buy urgently needed industrial products, gold, and wait until I think of a way." By the way, regarding the appointment of the chief of the army department, let Duan Qirui be promoted to the chief of the army! Chen Wenqiang said: "Appoint another deputy minister who we are more comfortable with as a containment." In addition, the establishment of the Ministry of the Air Force should also be stepped up. In this way, at the National Defense Committee, Lao Wu is the Minister of National Defense, and Duan Qirui, the army commander-in-chief, is alone. Moreover, we can also adopt the practice of virtual total and real times to overhead Duan Qirui. Of course, this is a last resort. ”

Song Jiaoren pondered for a moment and asked, "How about Jiang Zuobin as the vice minister of the army?" During the Balkan War, he risked his life to go deep into the battlefield as a military observer and obtained a lot of useful information for army building. ”

In the Second Balkan War, the methods of warfare did undergo some changes. This change was caused by the development of combat technical equipment, first of all, an increase in the firing power, range and rate of fire of artillery; It was also due to the increase in the number of machine guns (474 for the Allies and 556 for the Turks), as well as the use of new weapons and military-technical equipment - aircraft (for bombing in addition to aerial reconnaissance), armored vehicles and radios.

All of this prompted the Army to switch to open battle formations, using floor folds and trenches for concealment, while also having to protect troops from air raids. The army spread out hundreds of kilometers along the front line, but it was clear that both warring sides were trying to deploy their base forces in the main directions. The Balkan war proved the superiority of maneuver warfare and the implementation of assaults in the centripetal direction (centripetal assault), as well as the conduct of detours and encirclements.

In addition, the improvement of the army's firing capability strengthens the defense, so the establishment of a huge firepower superiority over the enemy is an important condition for the implementation of an effective impact. At the same time, the increase in the intensity of defense has made mobile operations more difficult. The trend of transitioning to the operational style of positional warfare is becoming more and more obvious. The war clearly showed that in order to achieve victory in the war, it was necessary to organize the strategy of the army.

All these materials have provided an extremely valuable reference for the Chinese military, which lacks actual combat experience, and more and more attention is being paid to the study of new strategies and new tactics.

…………

The roar of the engines, the roar of the cannons, the hum of the planes, the shouts and charges of the soldiers, all this seemed to still echo in the ears, and the firelight, explosions, trenches and other scenes still floated in front of you.

A group of officers headed by Army Vice Minister Duan Qirui, Chief of the General Staff Cai Yi, and Jiang Baili, president of the Central Military Academy, sat in the open-air stands and were enthusiastically discussing the air, infantry, and tank coordinated exercise.

To tell the truth, the scale of the exercise just now was not large, with only about 20 tanks, more than 30 armored vehicles, an infantry regiment, and more than 30 aircraft, but the psychological impact on people far exceeded this scale.

Duan Qirui regretted that he did not transfer Feng Guozhang's division to Xi'an, and if he knew that it was a mechanized reorganization, he would have fought for whatever he said. The work of secrecy has been well done, and looking at this, it is the first time that these high-ranking officers here have seen this latest weapon, and it is the first time that they have seen this three-dimensional method of warfare as described in the exercise materials.

"Brother Zhiquan, what do you think about the drill just now?" Seeing that Duan Qirui was a little distracted, Cai Yi, the chief of the General Staff, couldn't help but turn his head sideways and ask.

Hehe, Duan Qirui smiled to himself and said, "I don't have any ideas, it came too suddenly, I have to think about it and think about it." (To be continued.) )