Episode 143 Offensive and defensive changes

He breathed a sigh of relief in his heart, took a sip of tea, and said:

"At least in the current Ming Dynasty, the question of whether to go on the Northern Expedition is indeed something we can decide in this hall. In this hall, there is His Majesty, the First and Auxiliary Ministers, all the Cabinet Ministers, and the Supreme Military Governor. For Britain and the United States, there is still a parliament left, but for the Ming Dynasty, the people have arrived. ”

"Moreover, even if there is a real need for parliament to decide whether or not to go to war, parliament will not necessarily reject war. One of the most important reasons why many issues are not voted on by the parliament instead of a referendum is that when people make decisions, they are often influenced by various personal emotions and cannot be as rational as parliamentarians who are politicians. Therefore, the important question of the life and death of such a country must be decided by parliament, not by direct referendum. This is despite the fact that parliament is also elected by the people.

"For example, in our Northern Expedition, if we just won the Battle of Nanjing and the whole country was boiling with enthusiasm, let the people vote on whether to go on the Northern Expedition immediately, then the result of the vote was a direct Northern Expedition. But if we had a mature parliament and let the members vote on whether to immediately go on a northern expedition, the result would probably be no northern expedition, but a retreat to strengthen the Yangtze River defense. Why? Because at that time, although we smashed Pukou to a pulp and captured more than 100,000 Qing troops, it seems that we won a brilliant victory, but our army is no longer able to attack north. At that time, the absolute superiority of the Qing army was still there. …… This is difficult for the public to see, but the parliamentarians can definitely see it.

"But on the other hand, if we hold another referendum today to vote on whether or not to go on the Northern Expedition, then it is very likely that as Lord Xu said, the people will not support the war. Why? Because half a year has passed, the blood at that time has calmed down. Moreover, we have always been in the midst of a wartime economy, and the factories have been operating at full capacity, and the pre-war depression and unemployment have been swept away. Our people's pockets are bulging, they can afford to eat good food, they can afford to wear good clothes, and they can live happily. In this case, it is not easy for them to vote for themselves to end this comfortable life and face the bombs and horrors again.

"But again, if we had a full-fledged parliament and voted on whether or not to go on the Northern Expedition among the members, it would be difficult to say. Because in the past six months, the situation of the two sides has changed a lot. The first is that we have a solid oil base. Secondly, our Yangtze River defense line has been tested in actual combat, exposing many problems that we did not know in the past, and they have all been improved in the past six months. It can be said that the degree of improvement in the Yangtze River defense line in the past six months is comparable to that of the past ten years. Today's Yangtze River defense line is 45%-50% stronger than it was half a year ago...... This data was provided by General Cao Mingqin, commander of the eastern section of the Yangtze River defense line. Master Cao, is that so? ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang turned to Cao Mingqin and asked with a smile. Cao Mingqin smiled and nodded:

"That's right. However, there is one point to be explained, that is, the middle section of the Yangtze River defense line, that is, the section from Wuhan to Xiangfan, is still a relatively weak link because it has been turned into a land defense line. This section does not rely on the Yangtze River like the eastern defense line, nor does it rely on lofty mountains and mountains like the western defense line...... There are more than 200 kilometers, that is, flat land, purely relying on the acquired fortifications. However, this is only temporary, and the War Department has been increasing its investment in the past six months, and it is estimated that it will take another four to six months to reach the level of protection in the eastern sector. ”

……

Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled and nodded to Commander Cao in thanks, then turned around and continued:

“…… That is to say, in four to six months, our Yangtze defense line will be truly impregnable. …… In the past, both sides of the Ming and Qing dynasties had a common concept, that is, the Qing Dynasty was an offensive and a defensive position, and it was only possible for the Qing army to fight over, and it was impossible for the Ming army to fight over. But after four to six months, the situation will be completely reversed: it is possible for the Ming army to fight through, and it is impossible for the Qing army to fight over. Militarily speaking, we have no worries.

"In addition to the Yangtze River defense line, our army has also made a qualitative leap in the past six months. Our aircraft production has increased dramatically every month, and both the number of aircraft that have been installed and the quality of pilot training have formed an overwhelming advantage over the Manchu Air Force. And every day, our fighters and bombers are still being dragged out of the assembly plant and lined up with troops. In the aviation school, our reserve pilots are constantly expanding, there are enough instructors, there are enough trainers, there is enough fuel, and the trainees have enough training hours every day. Even if the war starts now, our army aviation can completely wipe out the Qing army planes from the sky in the first round.

"Well, some people may say that I am a 'Duheitist', and I know the plane, and it seems that the war will be won with the plane. Actually, I'm not a Duheidist. The label of the Duheist is that air power can replace ground power and that the air force alone can win wars. But I don't have such a 'label'. Like everyone else, I believe that the war cannot be won by air power alone, but by the actual capture by ground forces. But there is no doubt about one thing, that is, although air power cannot win the war, it can greatly help the ground forces win the war.

"Once the air supremacy is mastered on the battlefield, the opposing army's army is basically in a situation of being slaughtered by others. The degree of its misery depends on the level of commitment of our aircraft. In addition to directly killing and injuring the opponent's officers and soldiers, in the vast battlefield of North China, the greater role of air supremacy was to delay the movement of the Qing army. This 'fortress' exercise also proved that repeated air strikes by a few planes in the sky can seriously slow down the march of an entire division on the ground. If more aircraft were put in, the division would have been able to stop completely in place. The Qing army's march was basically on foot, which was more convenient for aircraft to attack.

"This is relative to the motorist. The motorized infantry division can pay a certain amount of casualties and continue to drive in the face of air raids. Moreover, because the soldier is sitting in a military vehicle with a canvas, it is relatively easy to bear psychologically. The walking queue is different, every time there is an airplane in the sky, everyone has to evacuate to both sides of the road and lie down to take shelter. If we have repeated air strikes, they will have to dodge repeatedly. If you don't dodge, you will suffer casualties from bombs and strafing. If you do this a few more times, the morale of the troops, no matter how strong they are, will drop to the lowest point. This is air supremacy.

"And cars. Now our monthly production of cars has reached 4,000 units. After the order for 35,000 military vehicles is placed by the army, our monthly production of vehicles is expected to exceed 5,000 within two months. This is not just a car, it represents the battlefield mobility of our army, as well as the ability to follow up logistics. You should not only see that the total strength of the Qing army is several times that of our army, but also that the mobility of our army is several times that of the Qing army. To use a more popular analogy, the superiority of motorized infantry divisions over traditional infantry divisions today is like the superiority of cavalry over infantry divisions in the past. And today the advantage will be even greater. Because even if our soldiers get out of the car, then our combat effectiveness, will to fight, weapons and equipment, and the quality of weapons are still several times higher than theirs.

"And tanks. Needless to say, the Qing army currently has more tanks than we do, and its monthly output is still higher than ours. This is due to the fact that the Manchus had more tank factories than we do. But this situation did not last long. On the one hand, we are also expanding the tank factory, and on the other hand, Beiqing produces a tank with the same number of working hours, which costs three to four times as much as ours. Even though their costs are much lower than ours, and their engineers are paid only as much as our average workers, they are still the same.

"We all know the reason for this: the cost is low, and everyone has no greed. Actually, it's not just tanks, planes, cars, cannons, guns, ammunition...... That's all about it. It's very simple, for the same amount of money, they can only build one, we can build three. And we have more money than them. In this way, at the rate of several hundred vehicles per month on both sides, we may be able to surpass them in numbers within the year.

"There is also the corruption of the Northern Qing Dynasty that everyone knows, and the army is the hardest hit area. In fact, the common people of the whole country tightened their belts to support the army, and as a result, 70 or 80 percent of them were 'supplied' into the pockets of officials at all levels. And even if the country is about to die, there is no possibility of becoming incorruptible. I can say that even if our tanks hit the city of Beijing, the officials in the city will still not think about how to save the Qing Empire, but how to make the last money for themselves. Don't talk about Guangwu at this point, even if Kangxi and Yongzheng are reincarnated, they are also powerless to return to the sky. ”

……

After saying this paragraph, Xiang Xiaoqiang's throat was about to smoke. He paused and took a drink from his cup, and while he paused, the hall was silent, and no minister seized the opportunity to immediately refute it. Many people, especially the ministers in the cabinet, were savoring what he said. What Xiang Xiaoqiang said, some of the content ministers know, and some of the content ministers don't know. But now saying it all in one breath has had a certain effect on everyone. Of course, these cabinet ministers are old men who have played politics for half their lives, and they will not be persuaded because of Xiang Xiaoqiang's words. But at least it had some effect.

Xiang Xiaoqiang put down the cup, and saw that everyone didn't mean to speak for a while, so he struck while the iron was hot. He turned his head and nodded to the fourteen squares beside him, and then said to everyone:

"Ladies and gentlemen, today is a meeting of the top military and political officials, but thanks to Your Majesty's approval, Princess Liaoyang also came to attend. Princess Liaoyang is currently serving as the deputy of the security team in the People's Guard, responsible for intelligence collection and processing in the Northern Qing Dynasty. Needless to say, Princess Liaoyang was originally the supreme governor of the Northern Qing Dynasty, and for reasons that everyone knows, she temporarily took refuge in Daming, and rebelled against the Guangwu tyrant in the form of helping us, and worked hard to liberate the people under her rule.

"It is precisely because of Princess Liaoyang's original position in the Northern Qing Dynasty that her understanding of the Northern Qing Dynasty and the Northern Qing Army surpasses all of us in the Ming Dynasty, and even surpasses that of the Northern Qing Emperor. Therefore, her efficiency in collecting intelligence from the Northern Qing Dynasty is obvious to all, and the accuracy of her analysis of intelligence is also trustworthy. You must be willing to listen to the current 'latest market' of the selling prices of official titles at all levels in the Qing army. There is no better explanation of the combat effectiveness of the Qing army. ”

The ministers glanced at each other at the fourteen grids, some suspicious, some contemptuous, some sympathetic, and some mild. Regarding the situation of the Northern Qing government's sale of official beards, the ministers all have a better understanding. However, many people know more about the situation of selling officials and lords in the Northern Qing army. Because the military is a relatively closed system, it is not as easy to gather intelligence as officialdom. Moreover, even if the Nanming agents sent back information, the information about the army was at a higher level of secrecy than that of ordinary government offices, and it was not easy to transmit it to the press. Even if there are relevant reports in Nanming newspapers, most of them are relatively one-sided, and there is no systematic and detailed "overall report". Today, Xiang Xiaoqiang moved Princess Liaoyang out, and it seems that in order to persuade the cabinet to approve of the Northern Expedition, they are ready to show some "big things".