Although the air battle on March 25 ended in the victory of the fighter formation of the Eighth Route Army, it was a pyrrhic victory. 5 The fighter formations of the Eighth Route Army lost a total of 12 fighters, which was equivalent to the loss of a quarter of its combat effectiveness. After the war, only 4 pilots were rescued, and the other 8 pilots all died heroically.

The sacrifice of the martyrs was exchanged for a clean sky in Liaodong, which created good conditions for the main force of Shandong to land on the Liaodong Peninsula.

After Liu Yimin led the fleet to set sail from Shijiu, he went all the way north, bypassing the waters of Qingdao and Changshan Island, and turned to the Longkou area of Jiaozhou Bay to hide before dawn.

Originally, it would have taken about 15 hours to travel from Shijiu to the planned landing point at Huayuankou in Golden State. However, because the warships and steamers of the Eighth Route Army were dragging a long fleet of wooden boats behind them, the speed was slow, and they could only move here to hide before dawn.

The 8th Column of Zhaoshan and the 11th Column of Xu Shiyou, who were already on standby in the vicinity of Longkou, were ready for the concealed fleet. As soon as the fleet approached the concealed assembly site, except for a few large warships and large steamers such as the Zhenhai, all the other ships entered the reeds in the Longkou area, which was tightly sealed by the Eighth Route Army, and put on camouflage nets. Even the Zhenhai and other large ships that could not enter the reeds were also close to the seaside paths, covered with camouflage nets, and looked from afar, and they were integrated with the small reefs on the sea. Even if the plane approaches to reconnoitre, it is difficult to see too many flaws.

In Longkou, Liu Yimin met with Zhao Shan, commander of the Eighth Column, Zhao Jie, political commissar, Xu Shiyou, commander of the 11th Column, Gao Jinchun, political commissar, and other cadres of the Eighth and 11th Columns.

The reunion of old comrades-in-arms is needless to say. Zhao Shan and Xu Shiyou reported to Liu Yimin on the situation after the reorganization of the Eighth and Eleventh Columns and the preparations for the northward advance.

Liu Yimin is very satisfied with the overall situation, and the Eighth Column has been fighting in Jiaodong for a long time. Part of the 11th Column is the Luxi Brothers, and some of the Jiaodong Brothers. After several years of training. Most of the cadres and fighters are old eight-way. In particular, the 11th Column withstood the test of war when it was still a garrison brigade and fought very well. After the reorganization, the combat effectiveness of the unit has been greatly enhanced, and it looks like a main force.

Xu Shiyou was a little reluctant to leave Jiaodong, and his tone of voice was reluctant: "Commander, this Jiaodong is a good place." There are mountains and seas, white flour, cereals, and endless seafood. There are also gold mines. I left like this, and I can't explain it to my fellow villagers! ”

Liu Yimin immediately asked: "Does Commander Xu not want to go to the Northeast?" ”

Xu Shiyou hurriedly shook his hand: "No, no!" Don't get me wrong, commander. I'm always looking forward to meeting the Kwantung Army! It's just that it's hard for this generation to meet such a good place and such a good fellow in Jiaodong, and I'm a little reluctant. ”

Gao Jinchun, the political commissar of the 11th Column, has never left Jiaodong since he was ordered by the central government to take Shandong to develop the armed forces, and his feelings for Jiaodong cannot be clearly explained in one sentence or two. When Xu Shiyou said this, Gao Jinchun's eyes lit up, and he didn't care about the others. Pull Liu Yimin and leave. Standing on a small mound, he pointed with his finger and told Liu Yimin how many catties of wheat per mu he planted, how many catties of peanuts per mu, how many catties of sweet potatoes per mu, and how many catties of corn per mu of corn were planted on such a good land. Then he said how much salt the salt field can dry in a year, etc., which means that the rich land of Jiaodong is the granary of the Eighth Route Army, and it must not be lost.

Liu Yimin patted Gao Jinchun on the shoulder: "Brother comrade, look farther." The Northeast is so big, how many Jiaodong can it withstand? Jiaodong is not abandoned, but handed over to the main force of the 115th Division! There are 115 divisions here, and the Japanese army can't occupy Jiaodong! ”

Gao Jinchun was born in the Red Army of northern Shaanxi, participated in the delegation of Shandong to the Seventh National Congress of the Communist Party of China, went to Yan'an to study, and followed Mr. Peng to fight in northern Shaanxi during the Liberation War. After liberation, he transferred to local work. Our army did not confer titles when assessing military ranks. Now, due to the reorganization of our army in Shandong, Gao Jinchun has served as the political commissar of the 11th column, which exceeds Gao Jinchun's military position in history, but he just doesn't know it.

Gao Jinchun hurriedly reported that he was not worried about losing Jiaodong, but just wanted to report to the commander the support of the people of Jiaodong for the Eighth Route Army, and asked the commander to write an article about the Jiaodong War of Resistance when he was free, which could be regarded as a farewell to the people of Jiaodong in the eleventh longitudinal period.

That's right. Due to the need for secrecy, the common people of Shandong still do not know that Chiefs Liu and Luo led the army to leave Shandong, including the families of cadres and soldiers!

Liu Yimin once again looked at the land of Qilu affectionately, nodded, and remained silent.

Due to the radio silence, Liu Yimin did not know the results of the Eighth Route Army Air Force at this time, so he could only wait for the evening to contact. However, in the fierce battle between the fighters of the Eighth Route Army and the Japanese planes over the Bohai Bay, some scales and claws still fell into the eyes of the air defense brigade's air defense guard post, and the air defense brigade commander Han Qianjin made a report to Liu Yimin. Liu Yimin learned the news of the victory of the Eighth Route Army Air Force.

At noon, Zhao Shan, because he was the commander of the old fifth battalion during the Red Eighteenth Regiment, had a very ordinary relationship, so he held Jing'er in his arms and made a small spoon to clumsily feed Jing'er one bite at a time. After feeding, put the little girl down and let her walk crookedly.

Ni Hua saw that Zhao Shan liked Jing'er so much, and he was overjoyed, hugging Jing'er and letting Jing'er call Uncle to the cadres one by one, laughing at the happy noses and eyebrows of a group of heroes who were mighty Japanese invaders.

Liu Yimin was also very happy, but as soon as he saw Jing'er, he wanted to stay in Xi'an, and he thought in his heart that he had to think about letting Tang Xingying bring him to the northeast. Otherwise, the two children follow their grandmother and mother, and they may lack the heroic spirit of a man when they grow up.

As a result, without waiting for Liu Yimin to figure out how to persuade Tang Xingying to come to the northeast, several old comrades-in-arms asked Liu Yimin why Tang Xingying did not act with the commander and whether he went back to Xi'an to pick up the children.

Liu Yimin had no choice but to say that Tang Xingying had been transferred back to Xi'an to work, and he would not come to the Northeast for the time being.

The cadres fell silent.

Liu Yimin knew that Tang Xingying had been acting with the army since joining the army, and had a deep friendship with Zhao Shan and Zhao Jie, the backbone generals from the former Red Eighteenth Regiment. Ni Hua is also good, and he is also respected by everyone, but Tang Xingying and the cadres have a deep affection. When I heard that Tang Xingying was transferred back to Xi'an to work, I am afraid that many cadres will think that they have someone who has forgotten the old people and abandoned Tang Xingying. To whom do you address this grievance?

Liu Yimin laughed and added: "Comrade Tang Xingying is only going back to Xi'an to work temporarily, if we fight well in the Northeast." She was needed to come and organize the support and carry out the work of women. She'll definitely be back. That's not just a telegram? ”

Zhao Shan hurriedly took the lead and said: "That is, we, the heroines of the Red Army, are we still afraid of the cold weather in the northeast?" Director Xiao Tang will not only come by himself, but will definitely bring Xiao Zhenghe and Xiao Zhengping over. ”

This is a small episode, not worth remembering, but it just reflects a kind of comradeship among the cadres.

On the night of the 25th, the fleet of the Eighth Route Army re-anchored from the Longkou area and rushed to Huayuankou. This time, the 8th and 11th columns also joined the northern column. The wooden boats in Jiaodong were all gathered, connected with wire ropes, joined the ranks of warships and steamships, and drove towards the Huayuankou in the eastern part of Jinzhou on the Liaodong Peninsula.

Before leaving, Liu Yimin ordered the radio to turn on, contacted Feng Dafei, and learned about the results of the battle in the white sky. Then he sent a telegram to Li Lingfeng, who had set off in advance and had arrived in Jinzhou to hide, and ordered him to firmly control the entrance of the garden. Ensure the safety of the landing of the main force.

The 2nd Flying Group of the Kwantung Army was disabled. After the evacuation of the fighters of the Eighth Route Army, the Kwantung Army was busy repairing the airfield, cleaning up the wreckage of the planes, and strengthening the vigilance against the Soviet Union. It is equivalent to not having the slightest guard. Then again, even if the Kwantung Army knew that the Eighth Route Army was going to land at Huayuankou at this time, it would be too late. It's too late to deploy. The fleet of the Eighth Route Army traveled all the way, but it was unexpectedly unfazed, and it did not even encounter a Japanese patrol boat.

Ye Ting smiled at Liu Yimin and said that this is Marx's spirit in the sky blessing our army, blessing our army to open the flag victoriously and land smoothly.

Liu Yimin said that it was indeed Marx's blessing, but it was also the arrogance of the Japanese army that helped us. The Japanese army has been carried away by the victories of the Japanese-Soviet War and the Pacific War, and has forgotten the three words of the Eighth Route Army. Even those traitors are clamoring all day long. It was again to make radio speeches, and again to publish articles in newspapers, advocating the victory of the Japanese army, as if their waists had also straightened. Well, the more arrogant the Japanese puppet army, the better, the more forgetful the better, what the Eighth Route Army wants is their arrogance and forgetfulness. By tomorrow, it's too late to keep them crying!

Ye Ting laughed when he heard it.

At three o'clock in the morning, the fleet of the Eighth Route Army sailing from Longkou arrived at Huayuankou.

This garden mouth is the landing point last time when Zhao Yonggang led the northward task force north to the northeast. At this time, it was the end of March, the tenth day of the second lunar month. The old yellow calendar is an auspicious day of the zodiac, saying that it is advisable to make alliances, collections, tailoring, joint accounts, and crowns. The fleet of the Eighth Route Army stepped on the moonlight, split the blue waves, and safely arrived at the scheduled landing point.

The special operations brigade led by Li Lingfeng had already set off in advance, and at this time it had already taken control of Huayuankou and received the landing of the main force.

The soldiers jumped off the patrol boats, motorboats, and wooden boats, and rushed to the shore in accordance with the battle plan to control key points and take over the defense of the special operations brigade. Immediately afterwards, the small-tonnage steamer rushed to the shore at the head of the rising tide, and the iron plate on the bow of the ship was lowered, which was a modified steel temporary bridge that could be retracted, and tanks, armored vehicles, automobiles, and motorcycles came ashore one after another. The wooden boat is simple, untie the wire rope and row directly to the shore. The only trouble is the large-tonnage warships and ships, this is not Shanghai, there are no ready-made cement docks, docks and steel trestles on the Huangpu River, the wharves are all gravel roads, and large ships cannot directly dock. Personnel can disembark and land on motorboats, wooden boats, and sampans. The towing of heavy equipment is not enough, and it is necessary to rely on the speed of the sappers to build a simple pontoon bridge, which can be used as a floating dock to facilitate the unloading of heavy equipment.

The sappers are busy!