Yang Hucheng nodded solemnly and said, "Wen Ge, I support you!" To resist foreign invasion and defend the territorial integrity of the country, our 17th Route Army is also a squadron, and it is also our duty. In this case, I will go back immediately and let Yizhi stay here. After I returned, I immediately telegraphed to the chairman of the committee that the 17th Route Army would send a division to join the 4th Route Army in the north to participate in the war in North Mongolia. ”

"That's great! On behalf of the Fourth Route Army, Zhewu thanked Brother Hucheng for his righteous act. Song Zhewu said excitedly with some expectations.

It would be great if Yang Hucheng could send troops to Beimeng to participate in the war. Although the troops of a division are not of much use, at this point he can have a closer connection with Yang Hucheng, which will be of great benefit to the future.

However, Song Zhewu still asked tentatively: "Can the chairman agree?" ”

Yang Hucheng smiled and said, "He will definitely agree." I have already received news that Weiru's 17th Division in Gansu has made the chairman very uneasy, and the chairman intends to send the Central Army into Gansu, and is still considering sending that force, but it seems that his favorite general, Hu Zongnan's first division, may have the largest surname. If I ask to send Weiru's 17th Division to join the war in Northern Mongolia with you at this time, the chairman will definitely agree. ”

Upon hearing that Yang Hucheng wanted the 17th Division to go north to join the battle, Sun Weiru happily rubbed his hands and said: "Commander-in-chief, you can see well, I have long wanted to touch Lao Maozi, this time I want to see if they have an extra head than us Chinese?" The Seventeenth Division will never disgrace you. ”

Yang Hucheng looked at Sun Weiru and said with a smile: "Don't be happy first, whether you can go to Beimeng or not depends on whether Wen Getong agrees." ”

In the Seventeenth Route Army, Song Zhewu valued Sun Weiru the most. Sun Weiru once served as Yang Hucheng's first military academy, and An Bianjun was the captain of the teaching team, with high military literacy, and was Yang Hucheng's absolute confidant and favorite general.

In the memory of Song Zhewu's previous life, Sun Weiru also attached great importance to affection, and when Yang Hucheng's army went abroad twice, Sun Weiru was presiding over the work of the 17th Route Army, and did not want to seize Yang Hucheng's position like others, but tried his best to maintain Yang Hucheng in the army. After the Xi'an Incident, he resolutely refused to be co-opted by Chiang Kai-shek, and did not completely throw himself into Chiang Kai-shek like Feng Qinya, Liu Yanbiao, Wu Shimin, Wang Jun and others.

Sun Weiru's military talent is not even more said. In 35 years, in the battle of the Sichuan-Shaanxi-Red Fourth Front Army, which participated in the encirclement and suppression of Xu Xiang's former commander-in-chief, the two regiments of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Shaanxi Garrison Brigade and the Liu Yanbiao Brigade of the 42nd Division were successively annihilated. Subsequently, the onslaught of southern Shaanxi, Keningqiang County, the defender Yang Zhusun regiment was annihilated, the regiment commander was killed, Liu Wenbo and Wang Jinzai retreated, Mianxian County was also occupied by the Red Army, and the Red Army continued to attack Hanzhong and Baocheng, Sun Weiru only led a brigade and a regiment to stick to Hanzhong, and the Red Fourth Front Army, which had more than 100,000 Sichuan troops looking for teeth, actually attacked the city for several days, and had to retreat to northern Sichuan.

In particular, Sun Weiru insisted on the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression in Zhongtiao Mountain for nearly three years, and successively smashed the 11 sweeps of the Yue army, among them, the "Bloody Battle of Yongji", "June 6 Campaign", and "Battle of Wangyuan" were the most tragic and tragic! The army was never able to cross the Yellow River and enter the northwest.

If you can take this opportunity to make Sun Weiru have a good impression of the Fourth Route Army, it is very likely that Sun Weiru will be used for herself in the future.

"With a fierce general like Commander Sun participating in the war, how could I be unhappy. It's okay, then please ask Brother Hucheng to return to Xi'an as soon as possible, and ask Director Li and Yuru to discuss the matter here. ”

Song Zhewu thought for a moment and asked Sun Weiru: "Brother Weiru, how many people are in your seventeenth division?" Is there artillery? ”

Song Zhewu's words made Sun Weiru a little embarrassed, and he hesitated for a moment and said: "Report to Commander Song, the 17th Division has three regiments under its jurisdiction, with a total strength of 9,864 people, and an artillery company, but only two 75mm mountain guns. ”

Yang Hucheng smiled and said: "Wen Ge, our 17th Route Army is not comparable to your Fourth Route Army, you are a complete range of aircraft and artillery, our 17th Route Army is very poor, and we are not afraid of your jokes, these two mountain guns are the only two guns of our 17th Route Army, and they were captured by the Northwest Army in Tongguan." However, don't underestimate our 17th Route Army, the 17th Route Army has never been afraid of anyone. Moreover, the 17th Division is still the absolute main force of our 17th Route Army, and the combat effectiveness is still assured by Wen Ge. ”

Song Zhewu shook his head and said, "Brother Hucheng, you misunderstood. I mean, since Commander Sun's 17th Division is going to go to Beimeng with us, I think so, I ask Brother Hucheng to go back and transfer troops from other divisions to replenish the 17th Division to 15,000 people. ”

Yang Hucheng thought that Song Zhewu disliked the small number of people in the 17th Division, although he was slightly unhappy in his heart, he still nodded and said: "Yes, the battle with the Soviet army will definitely be very miserable, and the casualties will be very large." In this way, I drew veterans from other units to replenish the 17th Division to 15,000 men, and I sent two additional brigades to North Mongolia with the 17th Division. ”

Yang Hucheng's supplementary brigade has five or six thousand people in one brigade, and two brigades are about 12,000 people, that is to say, Yang Hucheng is determined to fight hard and fight the disabled in the 17th Division, which made Song Zhewu very moved.

Since Yang Hucheng is truly defending against the enemy, he Song Zhewu can't be too stingy, and what he did just now was still a little stingy.

Song Zhewu thought for a while and said: "Brother Hucheng, I think it's better to do this, the 17th Division will go to Beimeng this time, and all the military salaries will be paid by me." The military salaries allocated by the central government to the 17th Division were retained for other purposes. Since the military salary has nothing to do with Nanjing, the 17th Division should not only be expanded to 15,000 people, but simply expand the 17th Division into three brigades and three regiments, plus an artillery regiment under the division, and all weapons and equipment will be provided by me in accordance with the configuration of the Fourth Route Army. In this way, with the addition of two supplementary brigades, the total strength of the troops going to North Mongolia this time is almost 36,000 people, and the salaries, rations, weapons, and ammunition of these troops are all paid by me. However, this is almost the troops of the 17th Route Army, Brother Hucheng naturally needs to supplement these withdrawn troops, I will give Brother Hucheng another 500,000 to do recruitment expenses, and make up these troops in Shaanxi, what does Brother Hucheng think? ”

For more than 36,000 people, the military salary issued by the Ministry of Military Affairs is more than 400,000 yuan per month, if it is a one-year period, it is 5 million yuan, and the military salary is paid by Song Zhewu, that is to say, this 5 million yuan is what he Yang Hucheng has gained, Song Zhewu gave him 500,000 recruits, and with this 5 million yuan, he can immediately make up the troops, and there are more than 1 million left in the 17th Division. When the 17th Division returns, then he will have at least 20,000 more troops out of thin air. At that time, Chairman Chiang was probably embarrassed to let him reduce the 17th Division, an anti-Soviet force, and in the end he would definitely acquiesce.

If the 17th Division is configured according to the weapons and equipment of the Fourth Route Army, then he will have another trump card in his hand, and he will have more confidence to gain a firm foothold in the northwest, how can he not make Yang Hucheng happy.

"Good! Wen Ge, please Wen Ge arrange a boat for me, I will cross the river in Linxian and return to Xi'an, and immediately arrange this matter, and we will telegraph and agree on the specific time of action. ”

In front of the gate of the former Yan Xishan Governor's Mansion, which has been renovated, although the two mighty stone lions are still there, they are no longer human, and this is now the location of Song Zhewu's Northern Frontier Governor's Office, and the guards of a squad on duty are on duty as usual, strictly checking the documents of people entering and leaving.

There is basically no change in the layout of the buildings and corridors in the office, and only a few places have changed the layout of the buildings slightly, which is mainly due to the fact that Fang Zhen and Ye Changgui have made slight adjustments in consideration of safety and security.

However, the most significant change is that many of the buildings have different names and completely different functions. For example, the plaque of the Zizhitang in the Yan Xishan period is gone, and now there are many sentry posts and heavy guards, and the Zizhitang has become the war room of the Northern Frontier Governor's Office.

Although the steps of the officers of all levels passing in this courtyard were hurried, their steps were as light as possible, and those who were familiar with them only passed by with a slight nod, and they did not dare to say a word more, let alone talk or laugh.

The large hall of introspection has been redivided into several rooms, the largest of which are the No. 1 and No. 2 war rooms on the north and south sides.

At this moment, in the No. 2 war room, Song Zhewu, Xiao Guodong, Tao Rong, Han Guangdi, Wu Jin, Zhang Yafei, Zhang Tao, Li Sichi, Pang Bingxun, Ye Changgui and others were gathered in front of the huge sand table in the Northern Mongolia region, listening to Mengxi introducing the situation in Northern Mongolia.

The main generals of the Fourth Route Army in Taiyuan are basically there, but I don't know why, there is a lack of deputy chief of staff Wang Xu.

Judging from Song Zhewu's bloodshot eyes and somewhat blue face, it can be seen that he should have not slept all night last night.

"According to a report by the North Mongolian Front Command, on the morning of 20 August, the 2nd Infantry Army and the 5th Infantry Corps of the Far East Infantry Corps, which are subordinate to the Soviet Army's Far East Special Red Banner Army Group, with the support of more than 200 tanks and dozens of aircraft, crossed the Tangnu Mountains and launched an offensive against our border troops to occupy Dabst, north of Lake Ubudsu.

"Patrolling and garrisoning in this area is a division of the First Army of the Northern Mongolian Cavalry, because this division is cavalry, has no heavy weapons, and is not fighting defense, the North Mongolian Front Command has ordered it to withdraw to the area south of Kyrgyzhu to stand by, except for sending a small number of troops to monitor the Soviet army."

Xiao Guodong took Mengxi's words and said: "In addition to the unreasonable demands made by the Soviet troops who crossed the Tangnu Mountains to our border guards, the Soviet Union has sent a note to the Central Political Axe in Nanjing through the embassy in Berlin, claiming that a large area of Northern Mongolian land north of the Altai Mountains and south of the Hangai Mountains belongs to the so-called puppet Tangnu Ulianghai Republic, and the puppet Tangnu Ulianghai Republic has officially joined the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and the Soviet army is recovering the territory this time, and the Soviet side demands that we withdraw from the area within 20 days and promise never to enter the region again. guarantees of no further violations of the territory of the USSR ......"

(To be continued)