The transport plane landed at Yan'an Airport, and after the roar of the engine stopped, Ouyang Jian and Stilwell stepped off the plane. At this moment, the commander of the Northwest Army Corps of the Eighth Route Army, Nie Rongzhen, deputy commander, Tan Zhenglin, political commissar, Zuo Quan, chief of staff, and other generals greeted him. After the two sides met, Ouyang Jian introduced Stilwell to everyone, and the atmosphere was harmonious, and everyone went to the headquarters. Ouyang Jian said in the car: "General Stilwell, after nearly a year of transfer, nearly 100,000 officers and soldiers of the 1st Corps of the Eighth Route Army have all been transferred to the west, and the troops are currently secretly deployed on the west bank of the Yellow River. ”

"General Ouyang, the 1st Corps of the Eighth Route Army was renamed the Northwest Group Army in order to deceive the Japanese army. I would like to know the details, what are the combat missions of the army group? "At present, the Northwest Group Army has been integrated with the Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningbo Independent Army, including various guerrilla units. That is: 4 integrated armies, 1 independent corps, 2 cavalry divisions, 2 independent artillery divisions including heavy artillery brigades, with a total strength of 200,000 people. The Northwest Group Army planned to carry out a counteroffensive in coordination with the 2nd Theater, and the initial operational goal was to take Shanxi. ”

In Ouyang Jian's simple explanation, everyone arrived at the group army headquarters. Walking into the headquarters and seeing the eye-catching military map, Ouyang Jian signaled to the chief of staff of Zuo Quan to introduce the garrison of the troops. Stilwell was an anxious man, and after learning about the garrison situation of the various units, he couldn't wait to learn about the situation of the Japanese army in Shanxi, and then proposed to inspect the troops. Ouyang Jian couldn't refute Stilwell's face, so he immediately arranged for Deputy Commander Nie Rongzhen and Chief of Staff Zuo Quan to accompany Stilwell to inspect the various departments. Because Ouyang Jian and Commander Lin had important matters to negotiate, they did not go together.

After Stilwell left, Ouyang Jian glanced at Lin, and the two of them understood that they would drive out of Yan'an City and head north. Che Shanglin reported: "Chief of the General Staff, according to the planning of the headquarters, the establishment of the tank brigade has been completed, and the strength is 4,000 people. At present, the headquarters requires that all 160 tanks of the tank brigade be installed by the end of the year. As of early July, the Yan'an Tank Assembly Plant had completed the assembly of 18 tanks and delivered them to the troops to meet the needs of training. ”

Lin continued: "At present, the parts produced by the Xi'an Tank Factory are secretly transported to the Yan'an Assembly Plant. Due to the difficulties of transportation, it cannot be assembled on a large scale. The headquarters strictly ordered that the secrets of the tanks should not be revealed, so the progress of the assembly plant was slow. If the tanks can be rolled off the assembly line directly in Xi'an, they will be able to equip the troops at least two months in advance. "Commander Lin, this is a helpless move. We must not only prevent the Japanese from knowing, but also prevent the Americans from knowing the inside story. Before the United States provides large-scale aid to China, it must strictly guard the secret that we can build tanks. ”

Lin nodded and changed the topic and asked, "You let General Stilwell know about the military deployment, is it difficult for him to command the Eighth Route Army to fight?" "Stilwell's abilities have been proven on the Burma battlefield, at best, at the level of a low-level commander. However, as the chief of the general staff of the Chinese theater, he has the right to know our military deployment and operational plans. I have obtained the consent of the Headquarters to show a minimum of respect to General Stilwell, which is a decision of the Headquarters and must be carried out unconditionally, so there is no need to conceal from him in our military disposition, including the battle plan. ”

"Chief of the General Staff, you didn't tell Stilwell about the formation of our armored brigade?" "The time is not ripe, and although General Stilwell has a stubborn personality, he is a pure soldier. At present, the truth is being concealed from him, mainly against the US side. If the American side learns about the situation with our tanks and asks for technology, will we give it or not? At present, the US military aid has not been carried out on a large scale, and the plan of the headquarters is: first let the battlefield test the performance of our main battle tanks, and if the US side asks for technology in the future, we can get more benefits! ”

"Chief of the General Staff, this must be your attention!" A smile appeared on Lin's face. "This is a game between major powers, the United States aviation technology is very advanced, don't look at the Japanese Zero fighter has the upper hand, but the Americans will soon improve the performance of fighters, and it must be the Americans who will dominate aviation in the future. As a matter of fact, we have learned from the Zero, MiG, and Hawk fighters, including the German 109 fighters, and extensively absorbed the advantages of various countries, with the aim of developing a new type of fighter whose performance should be at the level of the same period in the world. ”

"To admit backwardness is to seek truth from facts, at the moment our bomber technology is far behind, so we can only borrow chickens to lay eggs. In the future, the U.S. side will ask us to provide tank technology, and we can take the opportunity to ask the U.S. side to provide bomber technology. Comrades! This is the opportunity given to us by history, and cross-domain development is the shortcut to narrow the gap. We are now overtaking in corners, and it is the bounden duty of our generation to catch up with the world's advanced level at the fastest speed. In the field of aviation, after 10 years of precipitation, we have accumulated a large number of talents, and initially formed a complete aviation system. Don't look at the small scale, but it has all the organs. In the next step, we will build Xi'an into an aviation base, and we will not only become a space power, but also a space power. ”

"Chief of General Staff, I heard Director Xu say that the first J-1 fighter will make its first flight in February next year, which is so exciting." "Yes, the Xi'an aircraft factory already has production capacity, and the new fighter will be equipped with troops as soon as the first flight is successful, and as for the combat performance of the aircraft, it can only be tested by brutal battles. I have already negotiated with General Stilwell that as soon as the western transportation corridor is opened, the fighter planes purchased in the United States will be equipped with the Northwest Air Force immediately. At that time, the fighter planes we produce can pass off as US planes to achieve the purpose of mixing fish and dragons. ”

While Ouyang Jian was talking to Lin, the jeep drove for two hours and arrived at Shuanglong Town on the north side of Yan'an. A high-walled compound appeared on the west side of Shuanglong Town, and from a distance, the high-walled compound looked like a munitions warehouse. The front door of the high-walled compound is heavily guarded, and the two large black lacquered iron gates are very eye-catching, and the height of the fence is 3 meters, and there is a barbed wire fence on it. On one side of the courtyard gate, there are 4 big characters written in black on a white background: "Munitions Depot". While the jeep was being inspected in front of the door, an officer of the Eighth Route Army came out to greet him when he heard the news. The officer of the Eighth Route Army who greeted him was an expert who had returned from overseas and was also the director of this secret assembly plant.

The factory director obviously did not have any mental preparation, and did not expect two big men to come to inspect. Under the apprehensive recommendation of the factory director, the group entered the assembly workshop. There are two tanks being assembled in the workshop, and many workers are busy. "Chief of the General Staff, Commander Lin, this is the Lion 1 main battle tank. The tank weighs 30 tons and has a crew of 4 people. The main gun of the tank was 80 mm, 1 12, 6 mm vehicle-mounted machine guns ·······. "The silhouette of the tank has been formed, and it is almost a copy of the later Type 59 tank. In fact, every link of tank manufacturing, including development, Ouyang Jian is clear, but he still patiently listened to the introduction of the factory director.

"How many tanks have been assembled now? When will 160 tanks be assembled! "Chief of the General Staff, 18 tanks have been assembled, all of which have been handed over to the troops for training. Due to secrecy, it could not be transported on a large scale, and the parts of the tank were mixed in the transport team for secret transfer. At present, transportation is a bottleneck, and it is planned that 160 tanks will be assembled and handed over to the troops in about November. "It's hard for you to keep it secret and complete the task at the same time, is there any difficulty?" "Please rest assured that the Chief of the General Staff will be able to overcome difficulties and ensure the completion of the task!"

After looking around, Ouyang Jian was very satisfied after understanding the situation in general. The two walked out of the assembly plant and asked: "Chief of the General Staff, the tank brigade is secretly stationed in Dagou Village in the west, do you want to go and see it?" "Forget it, General Stilwell and I will return to Chongqing tomorrow, and Lao Chiang will listen to my return." The two got in the car and turned back to Yan'an. On the way, Ouyang Jian remembered something and asked: "Commander Lin, at present, the Fu Zuoyi Department of the 2nd Theater has been incorporated into the logistics system of the Eighth Route Army, and the department has been redressed, so you must cooperate closely with each other." ”

"Chief of the General Staff, at the end of the month, I am going to go to the 5 Yuan to draw up an operational plan on how to coordinate operations. As long as American fighters arrive, I am prepared to conduct air combat and ground offensive at the same time, so as not to give the Japanese a chance to breathe. The battle plan has been submitted to HQ and I need your support! "Three-dimensional attack, surprise, the Japanese army will not think that I am in favor!" "What do you think about the use of armored brigades?" "I am ready to put the 1st and 2nd Tank Regiments into the north to assist Fu Zuoyi's troops in launching a counteroffensive."

Seeing Lin's deep eyes, Ouyang Jian's eyes lit up and said, "Tell me what you think?" "Chief of the General Staff, I am going to use one army to contain the enemy in Taiyuan, concentrate the main force to attack Datong first, and cut off the Japanese army in the north. As long as Fu Zuoyi wins Baotou, the whole game of chess will be alive. If Baotou and Datong are taken, the east can attack Baoding and threaten Beiping, and the south can eat the main force of the Japanese army in Taiyuan, and the initiative can be held in our hands. "Your battle plan is feasible, and I think headquarters will approve your plan soon."

That night, when Stilwell did not return from his inspection, Ouyang Jian and Lin Jian, including Liu Zhidan, chairman of the border region, who had rushed back from the north, sat together to discuss. Lin exhausted the friendship of the landlord to wash the dust for Ouyang Jian, and Liu Zhidan reported on the preparations for the border area at the wine table. "Chief of the General Staff, the logistics of the troops is basically perfect, 1 million sets of military uniforms have been prepared for winter and summer, and a large amount of grain has been reserved. In addition, we have mobilized a large number of migrant workers to support the frontline operations at any time. When I heard that a counteroffensive was going to be launched, everyone's energy was very high! ”

"The Japanese are grasshoppers after the autumn, and there are no days to jump, and at present, the Soviet-German battlefield Soviet troops have entered a full-scale counteroffensive. In the Pacific Theater, the main fleet of the Japanese Navy suffered heavy losses at Midway. With the acceleration of the U.S. war machine, the Japanese army entered a comprehensive strategic defense at sea and on land. But the Japanese robbers will not put down the butcher's knife, and they will have to fight to the death. Cheers to the dawn of victory! Lin usually doesn't drink a drop of wine, so he made an exception and had a drink.

The next day, Ouyang Jian returned to Chongqing at Stilwell. Before getting on the plane, Ouyang Jian handed Lin a letter and instructed Lin to hand it over to Fu Zuoyi in person.