At present, the sphere of influence of the Crossing Group in Annam is concentrated on the northern coast, and there are no security concerns for a while, and even if the North Vietnamese are defeated after this, it will be difficult to attack the Tu Son Peninsula in the short term. Needless to say, the Black Earth Port, which needs to be reached across the sea, is easy to defend and difficult to attack, and it is difficult to pose a substantial threat to it with Annam's water power.

But even the most optimistic people have to admit that if North Vietnam were defeated and the regime changed, the interests of the Crossing Group in Annam would be greatly affected. As Tao Donglai said earlier, the main source of import for the three important items of immigration, energy, and food through the group is the North Vietnamese region, and the instability of North Vietnam will also bring negative effects to the group that cannot be ignored. In particular, the expansion of Western forces on the Indochina Peninsula is something that the Executive Committee absolutely cannot tolerate. Now that Malacca is under the control of Western forces, if even Indochina is occupied by Western forces, then the pace of southward expansion in the future will have to be greatly slowed down.

Whether it was military aid to North Vietnam or trying to contact the southern Champa state, the ultimate goal was to achieve indirect control of the political situation in the Indochina Peninsula, drive out the Western forces, and control the route from the Straits of Malacca to the Indochina Peninsula to Chinese mainland. This vision will take years to realize, but if you can't even take the first step to support the puppet regime, then there is no need to talk about expansion and hegemony in the future.

From the perspective of pure interests, the Crossing Group really cannot sit idly by and watch North Vietnam lose this civil war, and even Gu Kai and Meng He, who are opposed to direct military intervention, have to admit that the situation of the civil war in Annam will have a profound impact on the future of the Crossing Group.

In the ensuing vote of the Executive Committee, the nine members of the Executive Committee voted seven in favor, one against, and one abstention, and passed the resolution to intervene in the civil war in Annam. After Tao Donglai finished announcing this resolution, Gu Kai immediately raised his hand to indicate that he had something to say.

"Although the results of the resolution have come out, I would like to remind you once again of the danger of war, with our current strength, we simply cannot afford to fight a war of attrition, nor can we afford too many casualties, and when considering the means of intervention, please do not only think about long-term interests, but also remember to think about the profits and losses that military action will cause in the short term. Although Gu Kai was a little dissatisfied with the results of the vote, he still dutifully played the role of an opposition, and did not forget to remind the participants of the problems that military means may bring to themselves.

"Let's start with the possible military means. Yan Chujie did not have the patience to listen to Gu Kai's sermon here to preach his peace theory, and immediately introduced the topic into the actual situation: "According to what we know so far, the new North Vietnamese army that has been trained has not yet reached the predetermined level, and its combat effectiveness is still doubtful. In addition, considering the distance from the Tushan Peninsula to the battlefield, I think it is necessary to involve the Ministry of Shipping in this operation. ”

The distance between the two places by land is nearly 400 kilometres, compared to a quarter of the distance by sea, and the journey by boat from the Tushan Peninsula is much faster than the overland march, which may take three times as long as the journey. If you want to project troops quickly, then the sea route is undoubtedly the most sensible choice. However, the sea vessels that the North Vietnamese side can provide have the problem of small tonnage, and they are certainly not as efficient as the professional shipping team of the Crossing Group.

At present, the Ministry of Shipping has arranged more than 10 large ships on the route from Sanya to Beibu Gulf, and after the capacity is sufficient, it has not packed a shipload of passengers and goods as in the past, but gradually vacated a few ships specifically for migrant transportation to the Tushan Peninsula, and the total capacity has been greatly improved compared with the previous months. If it is really to be used to transport troops, then it should not be a big problem to mobilize a few cargo ships and deliver more than 1,000 North Vietnamese new army companies and equipment to the combat zone at one time.

Yue Zhiyun also affirmed this on behalf of the Ministry of Shipping, but he also pointed out that this requires at least a week in advance to set the time for action, so that the Ministry of Shipping has enough time to adjust the sailing schedule. And if it were necessary to send out the militia units of the Crossing Group to fight across the sea, the complexity of the transport task would be multiplied, after all, there would be at least two more ports for the loading of troops and supplies. In addition, this transport fleet is not to send troops over and finish the matter, at least a few ships must be left in the local coastal zone as maritime protection and mobile transport capacity, and if necessary, it can even take on the combat mission of attacking and harassing the opponent's coast.

"There is no if, our people will definitely have to move, and the new army of North Vietnam is unreliable. After listening to Yue Zhiyun's speech, Qian Tiandun took over the conversation. Among the attendees, he was probably the one who knew the most about the actual combat power of the North Vietnamese New Army.

Qian Tiandun continued: "The North Vietnamese army we trained on the Tu Son Peninsula is still barely able to pass in terms of military discipline, but the biggest problem is that their live-fire training is too little, and it is difficult to say what kind of performance they will have on the battlefield. Moreover, they lacked the cooperation of spearmen, which was a very big hidden danger, and once the battle situation was unfavorable, the musketeer phalanx lacked effective cover when retreating, and it was easy to rout. ”

"Our militia doesn't have spearmen either......" muttered to the attendees, who they didn't know.

"Our militia units have now been equipped with 27-type flintlock muskets, which are much better than the export arquebuses in terms of range, rate of fire, and accuracy, and even the bayonets are nearly twice as long as the export types, so the battle formations used by our militia units are not the Gustav phalanx with spearmen of the North Vietnamese New Army, but a linear array with a shallower depth and a wider combat surface. For our troops, spearmen were not a necessity. Qian Tiandun immediately popularized science on this issue: "To put it simply, what we are using now is the tactic of lining up and shooting. ”

Historically, the tactic of lining up to shoot appeared after the widespread use of flintlock pistols, and in the second half of the 16th century, flintlock pistols began to enter the armies of Western countries as standard. However, in the East Asian battlefield of this era, the Haihan militia was probably the only unit that used flintlock muskets in an organized manner, and because it "invented" the bayonet as a melee weapon half a century earlier than its Western counterparts, the Haihan militia was also the first army in this time and space to cancel the formation of spearmen in the musket unit.

At this time, it was impossible for an opponent to use the same tactics of lining up to shoot in East Asia, so the officers of the Military Police Department did not have to worry about the brutality of the battle to the point that the two sides marched at a neat pace to within 50 meters before firing at each other.

The South Vietnamese firearms units were obviously not qualified to use the tactic of lining up to shoot, and the result of the mixed arquebus spear phalanx against the linear array with the technical difference in the upper zài was certainly needless to say, and the latter would achieve an overwhelming victory, and the confidence of the Military Police Department was derived from this. They firmly believed that after months of hard training, their militia would have no problem dealing with a group of South Asian monkey soldiers who were also technologically and tactically backward.

Qian Tiandun further pointed out that the current places of engagement are some narrow passes close to the coast, and although the flintlock units cannot fully deploy their formations, they can in turn maintain a greater density of fire and improve the efficiency of killing. With the support of artillery, it is not very difficult to hold the pass. And if the battle situation is unfavorable, you can also retreat from the sea nearby, so as not to be cut off by the opponent.

Ning Qi said: "Although I voted in favor of the resolution just now, I still want to make it clear: What is the combat goal we want to achieve? Is it to help the North Vietnamese army hold the battle line? Is it to help them defeat the South Vietnamese army? Is it necessary to make this clear?"

Tao Donglai said: "I also agree with what Teacher Ning said, we often say that we do not fight unprepared battles, this kind of preparation is not only materials and personnel, but also clear combat goals. Clausewitz said in "On War" that war is nothing more than a continuation of another means of government, and we must also clarify the purpose of government before we use military means. I believe that it is more beneficial for us to maintain the stalemate in the civil war in Annam, so we should not strike too hard at the South Vietnamese army for the time being, and the main purpose is to stabilize the existing front. Either side of the North and the South will win the opponent in one fell swoop, and it will not be a good ending for us. ”

Yan Chujie echoed: "Mr. Tao is right, and I also add that there is another important purpose of this overseas military operation, that is, actual combat training. As everyone knows, the two battles that took place after our crossing were in the early stages, and there was no militia at all. The existing militia has not participated in actual combat at all since its establishment, and I think the actual combat effectiveness of this unit can only be tested through the battlefield. Compared to the other opponents we may face, this opponent can be regarded as a soft persimmon, at least they do not have the ability to crusade against us at sea. Moreover, the firearms they use are all imported products, and one shot is missing, unlike our own production ability. I believe that using such an opponent to train our troops will play a great role in enhancing our military strength. ”

"So how many militia units do we need to send out to fight now in order to achieve the purpose of the war you are talking about, and how many can we actually send?" asked Meng He.

Meng He's question was not answered immediately, and Tao Donglai, Yan Chujie, Qian Tiandun and others talked in a low voice for a while before Tao Donglai answered the question: "We think there must be at least one battalion of troops. ”

After a pause, he added, "A reinforced battalion." ”

Please tell me more about it. Ning Qi reminded. After all, there are not many professionals here, and you Tao Donglai only said a reinforced battalion, so how do you know how big this force is.

"At present, our grassroots militia organizations still adopt the basic three-three system, that is, each platoon has three shifts and each company has three platoons, and the company is still the highest unit in command for the time being. According to this establishment, a battalion is roughly under the command of three companies, and then the staffing of the battalion headquarters is added. However, if the company is strengthened, there will be some small changes in the establishment......" Tao Donglai pointed his fingers and explained to the participants: "In addition to the original three companies, there will also be an artillery company under the battalion, and the engineers, reconnaissance, and medical personnel directly under the battalion headquarters will each need a platoon establishment. As for the baggage logistics, it can be handed over to the people, and there should be no need for a special baggage company. ”

Ning Qi pinched his fingers and said, "It's probably the establishment of five companies?"

"Pretty much. Tao Donglai replied vaguely.

"500 people?" asked Menghe.

"More than that. Qian Tiandun, a straight man, obviously didn't realize that Tao Donglai was playing sloppy, and actually explained to him honestly: "Counting the company headquarters, the combat establishment at the company level is about 120 people, plus the battalion headquarters, how can a reinforced battalion have six or seven hundred people, maybe it will be exceeded." ”

Sure enough, Meng He immediately asked: "How many troops do we have, how many of them can stay and watch over their homes after sending out so many people, and can we ensure the safety of various places?"

Tao Donglai coughed dryly and said: "The strength of the troops is definitely enough, the militia trained by our first three batches is just enough, and now the fourth batch of militia trainees who are being trained also have two militia companies and a security company. Besides, we have our own militia organizations, and with so many members who have been trained by the grassroots militia, we are certainly safe to protect ourselves. ”

"If you want to transport so many people to fight across the sea, the big ships basically have to follow you, what about the naval defense of the base camp?"

Sure enough, Tao Donglai said with a natural expression: "What I did before, what should I do now! Doesn't Luo Shengdong plan to do business in the enclosure of Shengli Port? When the time comes, let him come over to see the land, and casually bring all the boats from Yazhou Water Village to be stationed for a period of time, and the expenses will be deducted from the land rent. ”

Among these officials who crossed the group in Yazhou, Luo Shengdong was the most convenient to use, and it was not the first time that the executive committee borrowed ships and troops from him, and the two sides have always cooperated very well. And because of Luo Shengdong's vital interests, he basically has no other thoughts now, and he is bent on holding Haihan's big thick leg to climb up, almost to the point where he can follow the rumor, and the executive committee only needs to send a telegram to the Cliff Office, and at most Luo Shengdong will rush to Shengli Port the next day to wait for the dispatch. And Luo Shengdong's official identity is here, whoever is looking for trouble in Shengli Harbor will not be able to get along with the Ming Dynasty, and it is actually quite effective to put him in Shengli Harbor as a mascot for the town house to ward off evil spirits.

Meng He said stupidly: "If you can borrow for a while, you can't borrow for a lifetime, if the war situation over there drags on for a long time, it is not a way to let Yazhou Water Village help us take care of our family for a long time." ”

"Therefore, we also have to draw up an operational plan first, make detailed plans for the combat cycle, deployment methods, and combat plans, and prepare emergency plans, so that we can really start our pre-war preparations. Tao Donglai turned his head sideways to Yan Chujie for advice and said, "How long will it take for the Military Police Department to make this plan?"

Yan Chujie said solemnly: "After the meeting, I will convene the staff to discuss this matter, and the day after tomorrow at the latest, I will definitely come up with an action plan and submit it to the Executive Committee for consideration." ”

Tao Donglai nodded, and said to Gu Kai again: "You are in charge of foreign affairs, although you can contact the Tu Son Peninsula and convey our intentions to the North Vietnamese side." In addition, if we need the cooperation of North Vietnam, we will also make corresponding demands on them as soon as possible. You, Mr. Shi, and colleagues from the Military Police Department will discuss this matter together. ”

As soon as Gu Kai heard this, he understood that he was going to take the opportunity to extort a sum of money from North Vietnam. Of course, there is nothing wrong with this, the crossing group is willing to contribute people to help North Vietnam fight, and it is a cross-sea battle, and the North Vietnamese side has no matter how to be meaningful, and reimburses the round-trip ferry tickets or something. As for how much expenses can be reimbursed, it depends on Schneider's play, looking at the faint smile on the corner of Schneider's mouth, Gu Kai couldn't help but sweat for the North Vietnamese.

"The shipping department and the military industry department are also making corresponding preparations, especially the military industry department, seizing the time to prepare for war, producing more ammunition and spare guns...... In addition, the production of arquebuses should not be stopped, and after this battle is over, the North Vietnamese side will definitely increase the number of orders to us. Tao Donglai did not forget to remind the managers of the two supporting units.

It is impossible to sell such a good thing as the Type 27 flintlock pistol to the North Vietnamese, at least in the near future, so even if they saw its power on the battlefield, they would not be able to buy such an "advanced" weapon. Before the Haihan army was officially equipped with the next generation of weapons, customers like the North Vietnamese could only buy the most basic arquebuses.

Of course, as the first foreign military operation of the Crossing Group, the content of the discussion at this meeting only touched on the feasibility of adopting military means, and the real preparations were much more complicated than what was discussed at the meeting. The issue of troop transfers, which Tao Donglai has been fighting with sloppily, is by no means as simple as lip service.