In late March, the Guangzhou military government. "Commander-in-chief, this is a new operation proposed by the General Staff, please take a look." Pei Gejin, chief of the General Staff, handed a black notebook to Deng Zixuan. Deng Zixuan took the black notebook and looked at it carefully, and after a long time, Deng Zixuan closed the black notebook expressionlessly, and his eyes aimed at the military map on the wall.

Pei Gejin said: "Commander-in-chief, the General Staff has carefully studied your strategic concept, the Chen soldiers on the front line in Nanjing are still moving, and the Chen soldiers in Sichuan are moving slowly in the Qinling line, focusing on the direction of Wuhan, taking Hubei into the bag in the first stage, and creating conditions for the Qinling to send troops in the next stage." Deng Zixuan said in a deep voice: "Our opponent is getting stronger and stronger, and we must play to our strengths and avoid weaknesses." At present, the Russian cavalry and the Mongolian cavalry are eyeing the plains, so avoiding fighting in the plains is the top priority, and we cannot attack the strong with the weak. ”

Pei Gejin said: "The staff headquarters also judged this way, and the middle road advanced to the Tongbai Mountain, and according to the situation, the area north of Tongbai Mountain could be captured and the attack would be stopped." Our main direction of attack is the strategic point of Xiangfan, and after taking Xiangfan, we will take the opportunity to wave our troops into the western part of Henan and attack Tongguan. In the second stage, after the West Route Corps left the Qinling Mountains, it opened up the east-west passage of Tongguan to achieve its strategic goal. ”

"Good. According to Wanchuan's military intelligence, a Japanese army is currently appearing in the Suizhou area, and it is really beyond our power to come to fish in troubled waters from Damn's little Japan. I asked Chen Jintang to eat this Japanese dwarf slave cleanly and thoroughly, and I want to let Little Japan taste what it is like to be under the fence. Deng Zixuan said that Little Japan was in a state of gnashing his teeth, as if he had a deep hatred. Naturally, Pei Gejin couldn't understand Deng Zixuan's state of mind, probably he thought that the small country of Oriental Puer was also a fox and a tiger, and the commander-in-chief was inexplicably angry.

"Commander-in-chief, you should teach this group of dwarf slaves a lesson. Now that little Japan is holding the thighs of the British, they have even come to take advantage of the fire to rob. I will give Chen Jintang an order to surround this group of Japanese monkeys and eat them cleanly and thoroughly. If you don't have any point, the battle jihua will be issued in your name! Pei Gejin asked. Deng Zixuan nodded and said that he had no objection.

At the headquarters of the Wuhan Middle Route Corps, Chen Jintang was silent with the combat order issued by the headquarters, but he was actually very happy in his heart. The operational staff officer in the headquarters was busy and nervous, and Li Tianxiang, deputy commander of the corps, said: "Deputy commander-in-chief, the combat jihua has been ordered, which is very unexpected, and this time it is our middle route corps to take the lead." At present, our 20 field divisions are fully manned, and the officers and men are all waiting to be fed, and their enthusiasm for fighting is very high. The Western Route Corps played the prestige of the Northern Expeditionary Army, and we were not far behind. ”

Chief of Staff Wang Feng said: "At present, the Qing army has undergone significant changes, although the number of 600,000 Qing troops in front of us has not changed much, but the armament has been significantly strengthened. According to military intelligence, the artillery of the Qing army on the opposite side increased by 200, bringing the total to 300. The number of French-style rotating machine guns reached 150, and three-fifths of the Qing army replaced the new Remington rifles, and the firepower was greatly enhanced. ”

Chen Jintang said majestically: "Immediately instruct the staff office to plan the battle to cross the river, and order the reconnaissance troops to be sure to find out the Japanese troops in the Suizhou area, I need a detailed situation." "Deputy Commander-in-Chief, the Japanese troops are defending on the 2nd line, whether to think about it after crossing the river. The commander-in-chief ordered that the Japanese army must be annihilated, but we also had to consider the actual situation on the battlefield. Li Tianxiang suggested.

"I know that the fight against the Japanese army will be after the crossing of the river, but we must now know the details of this Japanese army. As long as the conditions are ripe, they will eat this group of Japanese monkeys cleanly and thoroughly. The commander-in-chief specifically mentioned this Japanese army in the operation jihua, so we must not slack off and must be forward-looking. "There was a commotion outside the Kung Fu Command Department," reported Deputy Commander-in-Chief Fan Tao, commander of the Yangtze River Fleet.

As a subordinate came in to report, Fan Tao walked in in a naval uniform and strode in heroically, "Report to the deputy commander-in-chief, Fan Tao came to report!" "You came back just in time, the headquarters of the river crossing operation Jihua ordered, your Yangtze River fleet will assist in the river crossing operation." "Great! The battle to cross the river has finally been issued, and it is really long-awaited! Deputy Commander-in-Chief, I'm coming by land to surprise you! Fan Tao said happily.

Chen Jin's eyes lit up and said, "Could it be that the new artillery has been delivered?" "Exactly, 10 76mm mountain guns, it's gratifying! Our infantry artillery is about to catch up with the ship guns. It is said that the explosion is three times more powerful than the 60-mm infantry gun, and the firing range is twice as long. "It's just great, it's like a tiger fighting across the river!" "For the planned operation of crossing the river, there is one more killer weapon, especially to suppress the enemy's artillery fire and effectively destroy the enemy's artillery positions, and we have the initiative." Li Tianxiang and Wang Feng interjected in surprise.

"Let's go! Go check out our darling! Chen Jinyu waved his hand, and everyone rushed out. The headquarters of the Corps is located in the former Wuhan Admiral's Yamen, and there is a wide flat land in front of the gate. At this time, 10 76-mm field guns were lined up and stood neatly and majestically on the ground. From a distance, people from the arsenal were handing over the artillery division. Seeing Chen Jinyu and the others, the artillery division commander ran forward and said: "Report to the deputy commander-in-chief, our department is handing over the new artillery with someone from the arsenal!" ”

Chen Jinshu said: "I want to know the performance of the new artillery!" The commander of the artillery division then introduced an engineer from the arsenal. Report to the deputy commander-in-chief, contemptible is the Shanghai Arsenal, a new artillery engineer. According to the order of the headquarters, all 10 new 76-mm field guns developed this time were allocated to the Central Route Corps. At present, the new field artillery is still in the Shiyan stage, and the headquarters means that the performance of the artillery has been fully tested in actual combat, so please come with me, the commander. ”

The engineer walked up to an artillery piece and said: "Deputy commander-in-chief, the new artillery weighs a certain ton, uses 76 mm shells, and the warhead part is filled with 5 kg of high explosives. The gun has an effective firing range of 5 km, the area covered by artillery fire is strong, and at the moment the shells do not have armor-piercing capabilities. The 76-mm barrel is made of alloy manganese steel, and there are 8 double lines in the breech, and the current firing error of the gun is within 30 meters. ”

Chen Jinyu felt very satisfied, and his eyes were aimed at the tires of the artillery. The engineer said: "Deputy Commander-in-Chief, another biggest feature of the new artillery is that the tires are made of solid all-rubber tires, which have good elasticity, friction resistance, and adapt to various road surfaces. In particular, bearings are used in the wheel hub, and the gun is lighter, and one gun can be equipped with two horses. The gun arrived in Wuhan from Shanghai, and the new tires withstood the test. ”

Chen Jinyu turned to Chief of Staff Wang Feng and said, "Let the artillery division test fire, test its performance, and then formulate targeted artillery strikes." We have naval artillery cover for the battle of crossing the river, and there is no big problem. The key is the issue of artillery support and cover after crossing the river. After the infantry has seized the opposite bank, it is necessary to be thorough about how the artillery can quickly cross the river, how to launch an attack in depth against the enemy, and how to provide strong artillery support. ”

In the headquarters of the Guangzhou Military Government, Pei Gejin hurriedly entered with a telegram in his hand, and now the cable telegram from Guangzhou to Wuhan had been laid out. "Report to the commander-in-chief, the middle route corps's river-crossing operation has arrived, please take a look." Deng Zixuan took the telegram and looked at it quickly, and then looked at the map. "Commander-in-chief, I think the operation of crossing the river proposed by Chen Jinyu is feasible. They spread out on both flanks based on Wuhan and formed three clusters on the 20-kilometer river, and the general attack was scheduled to be launched on April 5, the Qingming Festival. ”

Deng Zixuan glanced at the calendar on the wall and said, "There are still 3 days to go, and I will call back to agree to their river-crossing operation." I estimate that there is no problem in the operation of crossing the river, and the key is the question of how to develop in depth, and the battlefield discipline must be strict in the operation of a large corps. Chen Jinyu was strictly ordered to severely punish those who failed to enforce the law. "Yes! I'll send a report to Chen Jinchu immediately! Pei Gejin turned and left.

Deng Zixuan knew in his heart that at present, the pace of expansion of the troops is too fast, and many commanders have not passed the test of war, and how to enable officers and men to grow rapidly in the midst of war is the main purpose of the operation. War is brutal and cannot end in a short time. Now Deng Zixuan has looked down on the Manchu court, and frankly he looks down on the Anglo-French alliance is also very light. Geographically, the Anglo-French forces were far apart, so it was impossible to maintain a large army to continue fighting.

The next biggest enemy is the Russians, and once the war expands, the Russians will devote all their strength to a full-scale war, because it involves the issue of the Trans-Khingan Mountains and the territory of Central Asia. This war must bring the Russians back to their original form, and the Russians must be expelled from Asia. As for Little Japan, Deng Zixuan doesn't have to worry at all, at present, the small country of Dongying is in its infancy, and it has no ability to participate in this gamble. It's nothing more than the support of foreigners, who want to make some benefits. In the future, it is a question of how to ravage little Japan.

As a superior, Deng Zixuan must consider the overall strategic issue, because this is what he must do, and it is also his sacred mission. Although there is a belligerent in the iron rule that will be defeated, but the war is imposed on his head by foreigners, putting aside the theory of justice and injustice, for the ability to control the overall situation, for the freedom of retraction, no one can compare with this shijie, so Deng Zixuan is full of confidence.