Chapter 169

It took three full days for Chen Mingren to wait for his soldiers neatly. Three B divisions, each with three regiments, an artillery regiment, a baggage battalion, an engineer company, and a communications company. The soldiers' suzhì can only be regarded as average, they are all formed by reserve forces in various places, and the officers' su zhì is not bad, and the foundation of graduating from non-commissioned officer schools in various places and the two major army universities in Yishui. What's worse is that there are basically no veterans, and the officers below the regiment have never seen blood. Such a unit is pulled into the battlefield, and it is really a matter of personal life.

Fortunately, the officer's su zhì is good, and this is thanks to the instructors of each military school, and the requirement must be that they have been on the battlefield. The officers they teach are not blind to the battlefield. Chen Mingren asked for help from the old troops who were resting in Baldikurgan, and got more than 100 veterans, so as to seize the time to give these rookies a trick to save their lives on the battlefield.

Liao Yaoxiang and Sun Liren's tricks are similar, and they can't take care of anything else, so it's important to hurry up and train these recruits. During this period, new troops from all over the country continued to come to Dihua for a short period of pre-war training. Half a month seems like a long time, but in fact, it is just a blink of an eye.

News kept coming from the front that the battle of East Kazakhstan had basically ended, and the Soviet army had been surrounded and annihilated by about 450,000 people. At the critical moment, Stalin still did not give up his generals, and took advantage of the night to use multiple planes to take out the trapped generals one by one, and Lukin and Konev were all taken out. Overall, the first phase of the Central Asian campaign was a failure for the Soviet army. Although Stalin did not admit his mistakes, he still realized in his heart the consequences of the expansion of the purge and rebellion. The Soviets did not see much of a problem when they were attacking. But once they were met with a strong counterattack, many troops quickly fell into disarray. The reason is that the officers in various positions do not have much experience.

Pavlov still insisted on continuing the offensive, and the bearded man took into account that the situation in Siberia was scorching. Agreed that he would continue the offensive against Bishkek, and demanded that he must end the fighting within half a month, regardless of victory or defeat. Zhukov repeatedly built yì and retreated to the defense, but was not accepted by the bearded.

The Soviet offensive was not completely ineffective, at least in the two battlefields of Bishkek and Ferghana, the Chinese side was fiercely attacked by the Soviet army, even without counting casualties. In order to victoriously complete the East Kazakhstan counterattack. The Air Force threw almost all its fighters into East Kazakhstan, which also led to the Soviet Army's air supremacy on the left flank.

Pavlov made up his mind to rush before the end of the East Kazakhstan campaign. Take Bishkek and Ferghana. Formed a encirclement of our army in Andijan and annihilated it in one fell swoop. The desperate old Maozi was terrible, and during the Battle of East Kazakhstan, the Soviet attack achieved certain results. The two Soviet armies finally moved under the city of Bishkek. Ferghana was also tactically abandoned by the Andijan Fortress in order to further lengthen the Soviet army's logistical supply lines.

As bad news continued to come from East Kazakhstan, Pavlov could not sit still and personally came to the front line to direct the troops to attack Bishkek. He knew very well in his heart that if he could not take Bishkek, he would not be able to turn the tide of the war, according to the bearded man's consistently correct theory. He will definitely bear the blame for the defeat. In fact, Pavlov did make a lot of mistakes in this battle. But this guy doesn't admit it in his heart. He believed that he had made no mistake and that his defeat was due to Lukin's incompetence, not because he had tactically divided too many troops. So what is the most critical reason for the defeat of this battle? There is no doubt that it was Pavlov who dispersed his forces and engaged in a four-way offensive that gave Liu Mingzhao the opportunity to concentrate his forces on a counterattack all the way. According to the comparison of the strength of the two armies before the war, joining Pavlov to concentrate his forces on Bishkek, the two sides will at least not be able to divide the victory and defeat so quickly, and may even take Bishkek and cut off the connection of the entire Central Asian squadron.

At the end of the East Kazakhstan campaign, Pavlov had already regretted it, and the bearded man sent a telegram from Moscow asking him to organize the retreat of his troops. However, it was a little late at this time, and after Liu Mingzhao received reinforcements from China, he gathered sixty infantry divisions and a mechanized corps and prepared for a counterattack. What's worse is that Pavlov is unwilling to withdraw, and he intends to take a final gamble. The Andy railway had already been cut off by Soviet troops, Bishkek was besieged on three sides, and Pavlov's last gamble was to concentrate the forces of twenty infantry divisions and besiege Bishkek from three sides.

"The format of the war has changed radically, and it seems that our opponent Pavlov did not realize this." Liu Mingzhao was shocked when he learned that Pavlov was still attacking, and said this to Zhang Zhizhong after pondering for a long time.

"In this way, the pressure on Brother Xun Chen will be great!" The tacit understanding formed between Zhang Zhizhong and Liu Mingzhao made him understand Liu Mingzhao's thoughts at this moment.

"No matter how much pressure you have, you have to withstand it, and since Pavlov is unwilling to admit defeat and has to make a last stand, then beat the coffin where he was buried beautifully. Inform Xun Chen, put the Soviet army into the city and fight street fighting! Inform the Air Force to use all transport forces and airdrop the supplies needed by the defenders. Pavlov must be made to feel that he can win it with a little more effort. Liu Mingzhao said very firmly, Zhang Zhizhong hesitated for a moment but agreed: "Then do it, postpone the counterattack plan for ten days, so that the Ninth Mechanized Army can rush back." The 11th Mechanized Corps is still 500 kilometers away, and it will not be able to catch up. ”

"That's it, the postponement of the counterattack plan will be reported to the General Staff, and the president will review it and make a decision." Liu Mingzhao made the final decision, and the news was immediately reported to Beijing.

Fang Jianxiong, who returned to Beijing, hung Zhuang Sen for a few more days, and then "reluctantly" took half an hour to meet Zhuang Sen. At this time, over the British Isles, the British Empire had a hard time. The intensity of the Battle of Great Britain gradually increased, as the Luftwaffe's newest fighter, the FW-190, was mass-produced ahead of schedule and heavily equipped with the Luftwaffe. Because of the last Sino-German air force competition, stimulated by the Swift carrier-based aircraft, the process of FW-190 was greatly mentioned, and its performance was also better than the historical fighter of the same name.

As a result, the British Air Force struggled in air combat. Originally, there was a big gap in strength, and now it is even worse. Even the Mustang-A, driven by Chinese volunteers, in the face of the FW-190. It is not too cheap, and even the Mustang-A is slightly inferior above 6,000 meters in altitude.

Britain was in dire need of Chinese assistance, and Churchill hoped that Fang would agree to expand the size of the volunteers and introduce newer fighter jets. In fact, the performance of the Spitfire produced by Britain itself is not bad, but due to the impact of production and the consumption of the war, it is far from keeping up with the needs of the war. At this time, foreign aid was particularly important, and the British Air Force was in the battle over Britain. It's not just fighters that are consumed, but also good pilots. With the advent of the new German FW-190 fighter, the advantage of the Spitfire is no longer there. This made Churchill very anxious. I heard that China is producing a newer fighter, and there are plans to introduce it.

After meeting Fang Jianxiong, Johnson couldn't wait to say: "The British Empire wants to deepen its friendship with China, even if it can't form an alliance. It is also hoped that more advanced fighters and pilots made in China can be obtained. ”

"Mr. Ambassador. I know what you mean. The problem is that last month, when our staff landed in Yangon, they were treated with very much respect by your **. If I remember correctly, our explorers were forced to stay in Yangon for a week. Is this the so-called hope to deepen the friendship between China and the UK? Why do I think your **** side is very unfriendly to the Chinese? Fang Jianxiong spoke very politely, according to a number of agreements reached between China and the UK, one of which is the freedom of Chinese companies to explore and exploit in Myanmar. Unexpectedly, a team sent by Lu's Heavy Industries in Sichuan carried equipment ashore in Yangon. He was harassed by the British side and detained for a whole week before he was released. The Chinese side has made representations on this issue on many occasions. The British government expressed concern, but the British army in Burma simply did not buy it. This incident annoyed Fang Jianxiong, and at the same time affected the Sino-British negotiations on the Burma issue, which has not yet taken over British interests in Burma. Once an agreement is reached, it is a matter of whether the British army accepts it or not. In that case, what kind of cooperation is there to talk about?

Zhuang Sen knew in his heart that Fang Jianxiong was already very polite, and he didn't dare to complain about his trip from Beijing to Dihua and then from Dihua back to Beijing. China at this time is too important for Britain. According to domestic intelligence, American volunteers and the P-40s they flew were at a disadvantage when faced with the FW-190. However, the Chinese volunteers were able to achieve good results in the face of the new German fighters. Now that Chinese pilots are very popular in Britain, Churchill wants to invite more, preferably fifteen hundred, and a corresponding number of new fighters.

"Mr. Prime Minister expressed regret over the unpleasant incident in Yangon, and at the same time instructed the military to give advice on how to deal with those responsible. At the same time, I am in charge of the negotiations on the Sino-British Burma issue, and I am sure that the issue will be resolved soon. Johnson hastened to remedy, in fact, the attitude of the Myanmar military has nothing to do with the British government. Britain's military autonomy is very large, and when ordered by the government, the military often acts according to its own rules. Johnson is very clear that the British side has long looked down on China and even hated China, and its dissatisfaction with this matter is also very high, especially the troops stationed in India and Burma. However, everyone knows these things, and they can't put their faces on the table and say that they can't put down their faces. Now it is the time for Britain to need China's help, and the careful thinking of the Indo-Burmese military, Churchill will suppress whatever he says, and it is not the time to let them mess around.

"In that case, I hope that the negotiations between China and Britain on the Burma issue will have a clear result within a week, and after this issue is resolved, we will move on to other issues. It is important to reiterate here that China will not turn Myanmar into a province of China, and even if it does, we will promote Myanmar's autonomy and reach a treaty of mutual assistance in security with the new Burmese government. ”

When Johnson heard this, his heart tensed and now he was relieved. Dealing with other officials is far less tiring than dealing with Fang Jianxiong. This great president seems to have a good grasp of the mentality of European and American countries. And it has always hated the British Empire, but under the current international situation, China's covert assistance to Britain is unexpected. It is not difficult for a qualified diplomat to think that the reason why China is doing this is nothing more than a relationship of interests and mutual benefits. China received a large amount of resources for the war, and Britain received assistance from the Chinese side and could form an alliance. On the other hand, the possibility of an alliance between China and Germany is also in doubt, and all the British Empire has to do is to avoid such a situation. Once China and Germany form an alliance, the Chinese army will not be able to stop the wolf-like Chinese army with the garrisons of India and Burma. You must know that these bastards even beat the German Army when they were in France. The British Army, well, the combat effectiveness of the British Army is still good.

After a hurried farewell, Johnson immediately approached the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and reopened negotiations between China and Britain on the Burma issue. This time, the British side was very efficient, and in just one week, an agreement was reached that Britain would withdraw its troops from Burma and completely cede Burmese interests in exchange for 1,500 Chinese fighters, 1,500 rotating pilots, and 20 infantry divisions. Of course, Britain's oil fields in Burma are still controlled by Britain, and this cannot be compromised. Otherwise, what will you do with China?

In any case, Britain made a huge concession, which was based on the premise that Britain could no longer afford to have an enemy. According to the results of the discussions, by the end of October at the latest, all British troops will be withdrawn from Burma, and the squadron will officially land in Yangon, Burma, from 30 October, and will take over the British defense in Burma one after another.

After learning of the agreement, Churchill highly praised Johnson's work results, believing that this was a wonderful diplomatic operation that put a layer of protection on India. The entry of the squadron into Burma will avoid the crisis brought to India by the possibility of the Japanese army moving south in the future.

At the same time that China and Britain had reached an agreement on the Burma issue, Japan was ready to go south. July and August are typhoon-prone seasons every year, and avoiding these two months makes Japan's actions urgent.

On October 5, 1940, a large Japanese naval fleet set off from various naval bases on the Japanese mainland, and the fleet included six aircraft carriers, including "Akagi", "Kaga", "Soryu", "Hiryu", and "Shozuru", and the target was the British and Dutch colonies. The objectives of the first phase of the operation were the Philippines, Thailand, and Malaysia, and due to the existence of the Singapore fortress, the Japanese army did not take Singapore as the combat target of the first phase when formulating the battle plan.

Japan's southward strategy was not contained by the Chinese battlefield, so there was no shortage of troops. In the first phase of the operation, 20 Japanese divisions were concentrated, and in consideration of the potential threat of China, most of the Japanese army was still deployed in Korea and the Far East. Just to prevent China from suddenly turning around.

Twelve hours after the Japanese plan to move south, President Fang Da in Beijing received a secret telegram from the Security Bureau. The content of the message is just one sentence: the southward movement has begun. At this time, Fang Jianxiong was completely relieved. As long as the Japanese army moves south, the main strength of the Japanese army will be constrained by the South China Sea in the future, and although the United States has withdrawn from the Philippines, Japan will definitely have to kill the Philippines when it goes south, otherwise Japan will not be able to afford an additional sea route of more than 1,000 nautical miles.

Fang Jianxiong immediately got up and went to the Ministry of National Defense to convene an emergency meeting to deal with Japan's southward movement.

The reason for this is very simple, because it has not been determined that Japan will eventually move south, and the 30 divisions and five mechanized corps deployed on the northeast and southeast coasts have not dared to move up to the battlefield against the Soviet Union. I am afraid that Japan and the Soviet Union will reach an agreement to flank China, and then it will be a big trouble.

Not to mention the large number of Japanese troops, it is not difficult to get 3 million, and the Wehrmacht now has only 230 infantry divisions and 15 mechanized corps, of which the B division accounts for more than half. The reason why there are many B divisions is that after the continuous summing up of the war, it was found that the B division with the three-regiment system was more convenient in terms of mobilization and command. The next step is to reorganize the Wehrmacht, but only after the battles in the Far East and Central Asia are over.