Fan Deping, chief of staff of the expeditionary force, who was ordered to return to China to report on his work, met with General Wang Mingyuan at the Omsk railway station, gave a detailed report on the 1st Group Army's campaign over the past month and a half, and answered questions from former defense minister and current commander of the expeditionary force.

Also present at that time were General Shi Dashou, commander of the 2nd Group Army of the Expeditionary Force and former commander of the Northern Military Region, Lieutenant General Sun Wu, chief of staff of the 2nd Group Army and former deputy chief of the General Staff, and Major General Zhang Xiaoding, deputy director of the Military Intelligence Bureau. Because of the top-secret military strategy involved, Fan Deping kicked his lieutenant out of the carriage.

The group army that followed Wang Mingyuan into Russia consisted of the 3rd, 10th, 15th, and 21st armies, a total of four corps, and the 2nd independent heavy artillery division. Of the four field armies, the 3rd and 15th armies were from the south, while the 10th and 21st armies were from the northern military districts.

Wang Mingyuan already knew the results of Ye Yanbing's group army, and he asked Fan Deping to answer two questions, the first was the current situation of the Russian army, and the second was the current situation of Ye Ministry. Wang Mingyuan was not very satisfied with the answers to both questions, and given that Fan Deping did not know the actual situation of the Russian army and the front-line troops, and did not participate in the Battle of Bucharest (Fan Deping and General Artemiev went to Petersburg), Wang Mingyuan could not blame his chief of staff.

Fan Deping was very concerned about the ongoing presidential election in China, and Wang Mingyuan said to him coldly, "You don't care too much about politics, that's not what you should care about." I know that there won't be any suspense, what are you doing with that idleness? You have to return as much as you can, and when the 2nd Army arrives at the front, it will definitely have to fight a bigger battle, and I need you, the chief of staff appointed by the president. ”

Fan Deping was recalled by Long Qian. Wang Mingyuan couldn't stop it. Although he needs Van der Ping, who has already been in contact with the Russian top several times, especially since he will go to Moscow to meet the Tsar first.

"Please rest assured that your subordinates will return to the front line by November 15." Fan Deping replied solemnly.

"Deping, as you said, there will be a big battle over there?" Shi Dashou asked, staring at the huge map hanging in the carriage.

"The Russians want to continue their offensive against Bulgaria and keep Turkey down. But the Germans have increased their troops, and the battle should be carried out in that area, and our army will still act as the main force. ”

"It's not in line with the president's strategy." Wang Mingyuan said categorically, "Deping, you said that Russia intends to transfer Ye Yanbing's department back to Ukraine for recuperation? Is this news exact? ”

"Brusilov is not on the right path with Commander Ye. He was very dissatisfied with Commander Ye's termination of 'Fudan'. On the other hand. The arrogant guy wanted him to complete the raid on Bulgaria. After all, the victory in Romania saved him a lot of troops......"

"What does he mean to change Ye Yanbing with his troops in Ukraine?"

"That's how it should be. But Commander Ye was unwilling. The Russian Emperor may have met you more than just a polite reception, and they are eager to use our new troops. ”

"But we didn't sacrifice for them. Alright, you can go back quickly. Wang Mingyuan stood up and shook hands with Fan Deping and sent him out of his box. Watching him get on a special train carrying the seriously wounded back home.

Van der Ping's train started. Wang Mingyuan, dressed in a military coat, paced on the platform. Thinking about something.

"It's cold in here. Let's get back in the car. Shi Dashou said.

Wang Mingyuan did not answer, but asked Zhang Xiaoding, "Do you have a reliable inside line in the Russian army?" ”

"Yes. But the positions are low. And it's hard for them to get out of the nitty-grit. ”

"Yes, those people may not be reliable." Wang Mingyuan stomped his feet vigorously.

Wang Mingyuan knew that the spies recruited by the Military Intelligence Bureau and the General Administration of National Security were all Russians from the Far East, and most of them joined the army after the Great War, and their troops were more often transferred to the front line after China joined the Entente, so it was not easy to obtain the information they urgently needed.

"You go with me to Moscow, and then to Petersburg. Your task is difficult, but it must be completed, and it is a matter of the president's overall plan, and there must be no mistakes. It is necessary to keep in touch with the embassy in Russia, and the radio station is also located in the embassy. Wang Mingyuan explained.

"Humble duty understands." Zhang Xiaoding's public identity is the deputy chief of staff in charge of munitions, and he has assumed a pseudonym to replace the name of a second-level chief of the joint logistics headquarters. Van der Ping had already established a liaison office for the expeditionary force in Petersburg, where about twenty Chinese officers were stationed.

"Da Shou, is there a problem for our troops to fight in such weather? The temperature in Bulgaria is said to be much warmer. ”

"It's definitely much better to be close to the Black Sea. I am afraid that the 3rd and 15th armies will not adapt. There should be no problems with the 10th and 21st armies. ”

"I'm afraid I won't give us time to adapt. The cold has always been the secret of the Russians' victory, and it was by the cold that they defeated Napoleon. Get in the car, send a telegram to Ye Yanbing, and ask him about the cold protection of the troops. ”

Leaving aside the 2nd Army, which was traversing the vast Russian territory, Lieutenant General Fan Deping arrived in Changchun on 29 October and stayed overnight at the warm headquarters of Lieutenant General Cheng Erhu, who had taken over as commander of the Northern Military District, and had a secret conversation with Cheng Erhu, who was extremely concerned about the battle situation at the front, and General Song Jinguo, who had come to the northeast to coordinate the transportation of materials. After four years as mayor of Shanghai, he understood that there had always been opposition forces in the country, some of which were open and some of which were secret, and although their power was not enough to shake Long Qian's position, he believed that they must be taken very seriously, and it was best to "jump out" and eliminate them all in the second presidential election.

In Fan Deping's view, China doesn't need any democracy, and China can't engage in any wheel village, this country is the result of the bloody battle of the Mengshan Army, except for Commander Long, who is qualified to sit on that throne? He was deeply outraged by the news he received from the Chinese Embassy in St. Petersburg, and that there were people in the country who were expecting the expeditionary force to defeat the battle to prove that the president's decision to enter the war was wrong, but fortunately, Commander Ye's victory in Romania silenced everyone.

Fan Deping took the special plane arranged for him by Cheng Erhu to return to Beijing. The aircraft was changed from the civil aviation "Qingzhou" type, equipped with weapons systems, and turned into a bomber. But it's not as comfortable as a civil aircraft.

As soon as I arrived at Beijing Nanyuan Airport, the special car from the Presidential Office was already waiting there, and I picked up Fan Deping and went directly to the Presidential Palace to meet Long Qian.

Looking out the window at the rapidly changing city of Beijing, Fan Deping felt a long-lost peace, the city was covered in snow after a heavy snowfall, children were playing in the open space on the side of the road, and the bus stop was crowded with people waiting for the bus, they seemed leisurely and calm.

He suddenly understood his confusion: he was contrasting with Petersburg. In terms of architectural style, although there are large clusters of buildings in the western suburbs of Beijing, due to the presence of government and military agencies. The western suburbs have become a new city with a very different style from the old city. Fan Deping stared at the building that flashed by. Compared with the splendid palaces of St. Petersburg, which are full of historical vicissitudes, it seems to be lacking in class. But the atmosphere in Petersburg was depressing, and he felt that the whole city was filled with a dead air that could not be compared with the sunny and vibrant capital of the motherland.

"Report to the president, Van der Ping has been ordered to come." As soon as you enter the living room. Fan Deping gave Long Qian a straight shot.

"Haha. Our war heroes have gone home. Long Qian smiled and hugged his old subordinate. It's been a great job, and I'm so happy to see you. ”

"Commander, you've lost ...... weight"

"Really?" Long Qian touched his cheek, "I don't think so." It's better to be thinner. Deping. These two months have been terrible. I specially summoned Premier Fang and Speaker Hong to come, sit down, and tell us about the situation on the front line. ”

Fan Deping shook hands with Fang Shengyuan and Hong Yuecheng, and gave a brief report on the 1st Army of the Expeditionary Force in Romania.

When Fan Deping reported, Long Qian did not interject, and Fang Shengyuan and Hong Yuecheng were also listening. Hong Yuecheng said that the National Assembly was very excited about the great victory of the expeditionary force and would organize a condolence group to go to Russia to express condolences to the expeditionary force.

Long Qian asked many questions about the situation of the 1st Group Army, and since Fan Deping reported on the results of the battle and casualties, Long Qian inquired in detail about the troops' winter clothing, medical care, accommodation and food, and especially morale.

"Good fight. It was even better than I expected the best-case scenario. I was a little worried at first, but when the news of Ploiesti came, I was basically relieved, and that battle was the most critical. Xiong Xun has made meritorious contributions. Long Qian smiled and said, "If it weren't for your national and military prestige in Romania, the Americans, Britain and France would not be so easy to talk to." Long Qian smiled and said to Fan Deping, "You may not know that at least one ocean-going freighter arrives every day, bringing American equipment and supplies. The Northeast will become the latest heavy industry base, and a large steel mill will be built in Ansan, which will surpass Hanyang, where there will be iron and coal. Several large munitions factories will be built in Jilin and Heilongjiang, and the site survey has already been completed, and construction will begin in the spring of next year. In addition, the British and French underwrote 40 million pounds of war bonds, which made the prime minister breathe a sigh of relief. With this money, the finance is relieved. ”

"It's still the president's vision." Fang Shengyuan said with a smile, "Hundreds of millions of US aid will greatly promote China's industrialization process." These are all the fruits of the bloody battles of the expeditionary force. Your victory in Europe has greatly encouraged the people, and now all domestic doubts about the president's entry into the war have been removed. ”

"We must tell the soldiers on the front line about the situation in the country, so that they can understand that they are not fighting for the Russians, but for the motherland and their homeland." Long Qian said to Fang Shengyuan, "Compile a propaganda pamphlet and let Deping bring it back to the front." ”

"Yes, I'll arrange it right away."

"As you said, Shi Dashou's group army will arrive at the front line on the 15th of this month at the latest?" Long Qian asked Fan Deping.

"Yes. I met Commander Wang and Commander Shi on the way, and there should be no problem. ”

"So that we can take on the task of a campaign. By the way, on your way home, Ye Yanbing's troops have returned to Ukraine and are massing towards Vinnytsia. The Russians are ready to make a big deal in Bulgaria. If they want to do it, let them do it, and we won't do it. ”

"Commander, why did you change your guard? Bulgaria and even Turkey are not very strong, and after the arrival of the 2nd Army, we can at least take Bulgaria. ”

"You underestimate the strength of the two countries. Thinking that relying on four or five hundred thousand horses can carry out a war of annihilation? Underestimated the enemy. Don't forget, Turkey once beat the Anglo-French army to the ground. In addition, our logistics lines are not safe. If you are in politics, it will do more harm than good. By the way, take the time to go to the General Staff, Situ has something to talk to you about. ”

"Yes." Fan Deping took out a few letters from his leather bag, "This is Commander Ye's family letter." One of them is for you. ”

"Oh," Long Qian looked at the envelope and put it on the coffee table casually, "I know that when you come back today, your sister-in-law personally cooked a few hometown dishes, which can be regarded as a pick-up for you." I've gone to pick up your family, and it should be almost there. ”

"Thank you, Commander."

"If you two don't have any urgency, stay and eat." Long Qian said to the other party and Hong.

But Fang Shengyuan and Hong Yuecheng said in unison that they had important matters to deal with and left the presidential palace together.

"Commander, the presidential election is about to take place, right?"

"The 20th of next month is the day of voting. It's not good this time. Both candidates withdrew. Made me the Commander of the Light Pole. Zhang Shizhao, that madman, is ridiculing me again, as if I forced others to quit. Isn't it wronged! ”

"Commander, I think you're pampering them too much. For example, that chapter madman simply doesn't know what to do, and he can't be polite to these people at all. ”

Long Qian stared at Fan Deping. "Do you think it's a good thing that no one is running? Fool! I have to find someone to cover my face! Originally, I was going to train you for politics. But you can't get around the corner. Always think about political issues from a military perspective. So I've transferred you back to the army, so don't bother with politics anymore, it's good for you. You're also the chairman of the Youth Army, right? ”

"Yes."

"Unload it. Find the right person to take over your job. You can't take care of it anymore. And I'm not satisfied with the current situation of the Youth Army Federation. The constitution of the Youth Army Federation should be revised, and you should report to me after considering the candidate to replace me, not one, but several, so that I can have a choice. I'll talk to them when I have time. Let's not talk about this now, let's talk about Russia, you have served as my special envoy during this time, and you have been in contact with the Russian high-level, what are your intuition? Don't think about it, answer right away. ”

"Intuition?" Fan Deping paused, not yet sobering up from Long Qian's decision to remove him as chairman of the Youth Army Federation, and thought for a while, "Russian high-level? The Tsar's control was no longer good, and he favored a man named Gregory. Rasputin's friars, this man is said to have cured the Tsar's son of a strange disease, but the Russian high brass was disgusted with this man, believing him to be a curse. In addition, because the empress was German, Russia wanted the tsar to depose the empress, and the Russian military suspected that the empress was a German spy and revealed the top secret military information to Germany. ”

"That's all? What is the situation of the Russian army? Will there be a mutiny? ”

"Commander, I have not been in contact with the front-line units of the Russian army. Among the senior generals of the Russian army with whom I have come into contact, there is indeed a pessimistic factor. The Russian army has lost too much in two years of war, and they lack a thing, everything from weapons to food. The Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Army, that is, General Artemeyev of the Far Eastern Army, who dealt with us, was particularly envious of the equipment and logistics of our army. As for the stability of the Russian army, he once talked to me about it, saying that the propaganda of the Russian Social Democratic Labor Party had infiltrated the army, especially the navy, which had become unstable, and that in addition to the Cossack units, which had always been loyal to the Tsar, the problem of the army was also very serious. But it's all at the bottom, and it doesn't matter if it's at the top. ”

"That's right. That's all I have to say. You know, the Germans had enough of fighting on two fronts, and they dreamed day and night of ending one side, either on the Western Front, or on the Eastern Front. Now it seems that only the Eastern Front has the possibility of the outcome that the Germans wanted. But this outcome is not what I want, and the Russians should continue to fight, continue to consume their flesh and blood without more support from the allies! Do not underestimate this socialist party, they have a group of talented leaders who have long been engaged in the work against the current regime in Russia. Lower? The love of grassroots soldiers is the most terrifying. After you go back, your main energy is not to assist Wang Mingyuan in the war, but to lead Zhang Xiaoding to do a good job in intelligence work and try to penetrate your tentacles into the Russian army. In this way, the actions of our army are coordinated. In the event of a war-weary mutiny in the Russian army......"

Fan Deping became nervous, "What if that situation occurs?" ”

"Do you think it is better for us to have a new regime or to maintain the existing system?"

"I, I didn't think about ......"

"It's not going to work. Why did I send an expeditionary force to Russia and not to Western Europe? If we go to France to fight, the French very much want me to send elite troops to France, we don't need to organize such a huge logistics, the French and the British will take care of everything, and even get more weapons. But not in Russia. Now 70% of the capacity of the Trans-Siberian railway line is accounted for by us, which is not a good thing. The Russians are poor, they take care of themselves. But Russia has a long border with us, and we have to deal with this huge empire for a long time. A weak Russia is in our interest. No, their weakness is temporary, do not underestimate the Russians, their resources are much richer than ours, their industrial base is above ours! They have the best soldiers and people, optimistic, open-minded, hard-working, and sacrificial, and they lack only strong leadership. Don't say these things to anyone, think about them yourself. Take the time to study the CIA's intelligence collection on Russia, and before you leave, report back to me what you think. ”

Fan Deping desperately memorized Long Qian's words. He suddenly realized Long Qian's intention of ordering Ye Yanbing to withdraw from Romania, maybe it was a delusion, but it felt terrible - Long Qian wanted to use the expeditionary force to interfere in the Russian political situation!

Outside the door came the sound of a car's horn, "Okay, let's talk about it today." Your daughter-in-law and children have arrived, let's go and greet them. Long Qian stood up and walked towards the door of the living room. (To be continued......)