He Zhengdao, who hurriedly ran to Yan'an and soon returned to Yulin, knew very well that there was not much time left for them to go on the expedition. As for the imminent entry into the Wuhan battlefield, the newly reorganized officers and men of the 67 th Army are still very anxious and looking forward to it.

The reason for their apprehension is naturally that this time, they want to really be friendly with the Central Army. For many soldiers of the Eighth Route Army who came from the old Red Army, they are very clear that some hatred cannot be erased.

At this time, they went deep into Hubei alone, and if the central army was really determined to trap them, I was afraid that they would be more than lucky. After all, the open and covert struggle between the two armies is well known to anyone with a little political acumen.

And the reason for the expectation is that they can finally go back to the south. In particular, some officers and men who came out of the Hubei-Henan-Anhui base areas were undoubtedly most looking forward to going to Wuhan to participate in the battle.

The so-called 'three armies have not moved, grain and grass go first', even if the new 67th Army goes out this time, the government will provide the food and materials needed. But in He Zhengdao's view, this kind of lifeline cannot be put in the hands of the Central Army.

If you really think that the Central Army will guarantee their food and material supply, you will really be a fool. After the expansion of the new 67th Army, three divisions, plus a reconnaissance brigade and an artillery regiment directly under it, totaled nearly 60,000 troops.

With such a large team, the amount of food consumed every day is naturally not a small amount. If he really didn't make any preparations, He Zhengdao was really worried, he didn't have to wait for the little devil to attack, and it was estimated that the problem of eating food alone could drag him down.

Thinking of this, He Zhengdao called Li Xiangdong, who was also promoted to major general, and said: "The matter of our going to Wuhan to participate in the battle this time has basically been finalized, and the rest is waiting for the call back from the Central Army."

For the sake of the safety of the large force, I think I will send your reconnaissance brigade over first. Even at present, Lao Jiang has not yet given clear instructions on which area we are responsible for. But around Dabie Mountain, we must take control.

Around the Dabie Mountain area, we will strive to reorganize the Hubei-Henan-Anhui base areas this time. Zhu Fei had already led a group of people over earlier, and when the time came, you should remember to contact the radio and strive to meet there.

The first task is to collect food and prepare the supplies that have been allocated to us by the government. The four regiments of your reconnaissance brigade secretly entered the territory of Hubei and Henan as regiments, and finally converged in the Dabie Mountain area.

If anything changes, I will also let you know on the radio. When you arrive in the Dabie Mountains, the main task of the reconnaissance brigade is to monitor the movements of the Japanese army, as well as the defensive deployment of our other friendly troops.

There is also a special task, which is to leave as many troops as you can on the road from time to time while you are marching. Don't have too many people, just ensure a main company commander. In doing so, we are also preventing the central army from cutting off our rear route.

In a word, this time our new 67th Army will go to Wuhan, and your reconnaissance brigade will be the vanguard. Tell the officers and men of the army that all the new weapons issued to you have been shown to me, and you can't let the Central Army go to find out casually. Do you understand? ”

'Yes, please rest assured, commander, that our reconnaissance brigade is guaranteed to complete its mission. ’

'Alright, I'll call the commander in the future!' This time, when you go out on an expedition, bring the major general's uniform issued to you by the government, and you may be useful at any time. When you run into someone who is trying to cause us trouble, give me a big ear slap.

Remember, as long as we are on the right side, you should not be afraid of any influence. This time, in addition to cracking down on the little devils, our new 67th Army also hopes to restore the Hubei-Henan-Anhui base areas.

As long as we stand there, I believe that the common people will still welcome us. However, the situation there will be more complicated than the hostile situation in the northwest and north China. Therefore, when dealing with problems, you must grasp a degree, understand? ’

'Yes, Commander! ’

As far as Li Xiangdong is concerned, he never thought that one day, he could also become a general. But he understands that his achievements today are inseparable from He Zhengdao's appreciation of him. He didn't want to cause any trouble to He Zhengdao.

In fact, the expansion of the new 67th Army this time, the remaining three infantry divisions want to participate in it. It's just that in order to ensure that the independent column is in Suiyuan, the Kwantung Army and the Japanese army in North China have not changed much.

At present, the old foundation of the new 67th Army is actually the 1st and 2nd Divisions and the reconnaissance brigade of the original independent column. Most of the officers and men of the extra infantry division were selected from the reserve troops, and the combat effectiveness was naturally not bad.

As the reconnaissance brigade became the vanguard of the new 67th Army, it began to leave Yulin as a regiment. The remaining three infantry divisions that have completed reorganization are also making preparations before departure, and all work is also being handed over.

Regarding the matter of the arsenal, even many experts are somewhat reluctant to go to Wuhan for He Zhengdao. But these experts also know that if they want to obtain a safe scientific research environment, they also need military personnel to work hard.

If they don't drive away the little devils who invaded China, they can only hide in the underground research room all the time. At present, they naturally know about the continuous loss of territory by the Central Army. Now that the Eighth Route Army has passed, I believe that it should improve.

In fact, for He Zhengdao, He Zhengdao does not know whether the battle of Wuhan will end in failure. What he knows is that the new 67th Army must play the morale of the Eighth Route Army when it goes out to battle this time.

Although the officers and soldiers who went to Wuhan this time, I am afraid that many of them may not be able to return in the end. However, He Zhengdao believes that the new 67th Army, which has entered the Hubei-Henan-Anhui region, will be reborn in the constant flames of war, and will become stronger and stronger!

Regarding the research and development of the arsenal, He Zhengdao also told the management of the arsenal that the safety of these experts must be protected. As for the security and confidentiality of the arsenal, it is naturally also a top priority.

Yao Shengjun, the former political director of the Independent Column, who is still staying in Yulin, will also be responsible for guarding the base area. As for Wang Tianlin, the former chief of staff, he needs to be stationed in the Suiyuan area and be responsible for the defense and confrontation of the Japanese army.

According to the orders of the Central Committee and the General Headquarters, the main task of the various units at present is to develop the base areas behind enemy lines and to continuously expand the base areas by means of encroachment. As long as the Japanese army does not attack in a big way, they also do not launch large-scale battles.

Judging from the current situation, it will not be easy for the North China Front to organize a large-scale campaign of encirclement and suppression. Once the Japanese army makes any big moves, I believe that the whole of North China will become a mess again.

The North China Front, which has already changed its commanders for two terms, is afraid that if one more commander is replaced, I am afraid that the Japanese army will also feel very embarrassed and have a headache. And the way of encroachment can also ensure the strength of the Eighth Route Army to a large extent.

Even taking advantage of the fact that the Japanese army was unable to launch a large-scale campaign, it expanded some reserve troops. Once a campaign to recover North China is launched in the future, these reserve troops will also supply the Eighth Route Army with a steady stream of troops.

On the fourth day after returning from Yan'an, the central government officially sent a telegram to He Zhengdao, informing them to go to the front line in Wuhan. The task of He Zhengdao and others was to go to the Xinyang area, where they were under the command of Li Zongren, commander of the Fifth Theater of Operations.

This order, in fact, has not changed much from what He Zhengdao hoped before. Even if Xinyang is under the jurisdiction of Henan, Xinyang is also the border between Hubei and Henan, which is also a place where the Japanese army may attack.

Seeing this order, He Zhengdao looked at Luo Ruiqing and said, "Send a report to the reconnaissance brigade and the advance team to inform us of the next place we will go to." In addition, Li Xiangdong was told that he would be responsible for receiving the materials distributed by the government.

Before the arrival of the main forces, all operations were based on reconnaissance. In addition, I sent someone to the 51st Army to convey my greetings to Commander Xu Youchang. Next, our new 67th Army must fight side by side with them.

In addition, the Saber Special Combat Team was ordered to begin to enter the rear of the Japanese army and find a way to find out the Japanese army's movement route and material supply line. Even if we didn't get there, it was necessary to find out the overall situation on the battlefield. ”

Listening to He Zhengdao's order, Luo Ruiqing also readily agreed: "Then if the reconnaissance brigade is to go to Xinyang, will it all go to Xinyang?" Or do we let them, according to the previous route of march, continue the mission we have assigned before? ”

'The order is as usual! The 2nd and 3rd Regiments of the Reconnaissance Brigade let them continue the tasks assigned before. Xiaogan and Macheng are also the key areas of the defense of Dabie Mountain, and it is also very necessary to send people to the location in advance.

Moreover, this time, our new 67th Army participated in the battle to defend Wuhan, and I think it will also need to be expanded in the future. When the main forces of the two reconnaissance brigades arrive in Xiaogan and Macheng, the relevant recruitment work can also be carried out in a low-key manner.

At the very least, I hope that the main force of nearly 60,000 people will be taken from Yulin this time, and that when we return in the future, this force will become a force that has always had more than 100,000 members. According to the agreement, there is still room for our expansion!

As long as we can recruit soldiers, and we can support them, I still hope that there will be as many new recruits as possible. It is only necessary to warn our officers and men that in the matter of recruiting soldiers, they must be voluntary and must not forcibly pull in strong men. ’

Thinking of the expansion of the Central Army and other units in recent years, most of them like to recruit in the way of pulling strong ding. Not to mention the resentment of the soldiers recruited in this way, they will also be resented by the local people.

After all, the troops recruited in this way, once pulled to the battlefield, are often cannon fodder-like characters. How could He Zhengdao, who knew such a thing, make such a mistake?

Serving in the army is all voluntary, and this is the criterion that He Zhengdao has always told conscription cadres. At least in Yulin and other reconquest areas, there are far more young people who want to enter the main force now than expected.

As far as the current expansion of the army is concerned, many officers and men of the reserve forces in the base areas who are looking forward to being transferred to the regular troops are very excited. If they can perform and improve in the main force, they may be able to change their life destiny! (To be continued.) )